A quicker mode of travel coming soon? DT you said??
Drone based travel, call it DT for short, is coming a bit too soon, it appears.
Not really, because the technology might get ready to fly you, in a small cube, from floor to floor or from home to office, but the control systems may not be in place. Or, as it happened with many recent technologies, the tech would take the front seat and governments, law-makers and businesses would try to catch up.
Even if DT is not available to you and me, at least ambulances may run on it, people could be picked from disaster scenes and police may be able to chase offenders better. There are many situations in which DT would possibly be able to save lives and help the society in other ways. And think of flying in the sky for adventure and entertainment! At the same time, the possibility of misuse of this tech is very scary.
I am looking at not investing in a cube or pod even if it is offered to me tomorrow, as it would be very expensive in the beginning, but I'd sure try an air taxi at the first opportunity. We are hearing that Uber or Texla or Google or some other firm would soon start such a service in some parts of the globe. In India, perhaps before we come to hire or own these air travel vehicle, the entire production would be used by Ministers and other VIPs, with red beacon lights on top!
Sorry for that sarcasm, borne mostly out of envy, and let's come back to technology.
DT, when it comes to happen, will be more disruptive than driver-less cars. In fact, they might disrupt the progression of such cars , which themselves are threatening to disrupt the present vehicle industry. If supporting technologies develop as fast, technological solutions to possible mid-air collisions, bird-hits, crash-lands, weather-related problems, etc may come by equally fast. Perhaps grounded issues such as pollution and privacy-theft will be more difficult to handle - and who cares.
One thing is certain; for the first few years of DT, don't expect too much jam or drone pods lining up in the sky to land on an office compound.
Ten years? Five? How much time you'd like to wait till DT becomes a commonplace mode of travel?
Jan 2020 update:
In CES 2020, the world's biggest technology show, held in Jan 2020, a flying taxi was unveiled. Hyundai, Uber join hands to start a flying taxi, which is a cross between an automobile and a helicopter. This may lead to new modes of transport, possibly with drone tech to power it. For details please go here: Flying taxi