In the urbanist sphere, much debate over autonomous vehicles (self-driving cars) boils down to whether they will encourage further sprawl – and the negative externalities sprawl creates when built to excess – or denser construction and more urbanized living. There are compelling arguments in both directions. By making driving safer, and ostensibly decreasing congestion by decreasing the required minimum distance between vehicles, it’s plausible that an autonomous future could result in more dispersion. By reducing the need for parking near destinations, on the other hand, autonomous vehicles might encourage urban commerce…[read the rest here]