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Snooze off motorway blues with robot driver
Dreary hours of motorway driving could be a thing of the past once autonomous vehicles start to be widely used but a group of friends are developing a solution for before that – with a robot car transporter.
The idea of Projet Symone is to have individual autonomous transporters at motorway aires to let drivers drive their car on to the low-loader and then relax while being carried to the next rest area to continue their trip.
Developed by a Dijon group, Symone combines the safety, environmental efficiency and free time of rail travel without the disadvantages of city centre stations, lack of car, less luggage and a fixed timetable.
The idea came after the four friends returned to Dijon from Marseille and faced a six-hour journey with fatigue, stress and a car breakdown.
Vinci Autoroutes has shown interest and Projet Symone will develop the idea before working with auto-builders in the run-up to autonomous cars becoming widespread in a decade.
