Unfortunately this seem to have become par for the course on HN. Disagree, but don't say why so no one can counteract your arguments. Anyone who looks at self-driving cars from an engineering perspective know that there are still many challenges.

Congestion is more a factor of tolerance than technology. As demand and tolerance for long commutes go up we might actually see less efficiency. [0]

It's still hard to match the human mind, especially without significant overhead. [1]

Cars are a compromise and aren't as efficient as pods or as fast as trains. [2]

Current electric vehicle technology can only drive you for about an hour at relativly slow train speed, at which point you'll have to charge for about as long. [3]

etc.

The car really is the weakest link in the "self-driving car". Which isn't unexpected because it's engineered around the driver.

[0] http://journalistsresource.org/studies/environment/transport...

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kp3ik5f3-2c

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ULTra_(rapid_transit)

[3] http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/1024x768q90/203/modelsrange...