Driverless Cars? In Florida, Maybe

Driving may get a little less hands-on in the Sunshine State, according to experts from the Florida Department of Transportation.

The experts gathered Thursday and said Floridians could see widespread use of automated cars in the next decade or so due to advances in computer software, GPS systems and sensors.

According to the Tampa Bay Times, the FDOT is gathering with the University of South Florida's Center for Urban Transportation Research and other groups to host the first ever Florida Automated Vehicles Summit to get driverless cars on the road in Florida.

Florida is one of three states that has passed legislation allowing automated vehicles to be tested on public roads. California and Nevada both have similar legislation.

Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, who sponsors the bill, says automated cars are the way of the future and that Floridians could use them by 2025.

"We know that every manufacturer as well as Google is working on this," he said. "This is the game changer. It's as big as the change from buggy whips to the car."

Google developed a driverless car that has logged more than 500,000 autonomous miles. Brandes says he envisions similar vehicles being used to move freight around at ports. Later, the automated cars would expand to highways for Floridians' daily commutes, and driverless cars could eventually be used like a taxi service.

As part of Brandes' legislation, the Department of Highway Safety is working on a study due in February on what the state would need to specifically do to implement the technology for automated vehicles. While the cars wouldn't need additional infrastructure to operate, they could require changes to intersections, signs and highway ramps to be fully functional.