Traffic Decongestion

Cars would be equipped with self-driving technology, including onboard sensors (both vision cameras and LIDAR). Vehicles would also be able to communicate with each other, as well as with a central control node.

Automated system would take over during periods of heavy traffic congestion, so that vehicles would be able to coordinate with each other in maintaining a high rate of throughput and good travel time, instead of traffic gridlock.

System would first be deployed on downtown taxis, in the denser urban environment where traffic congestion is highest. All taxis would be required to have this hardware installed in order to operate in the downtown area. In return, these taxi fleets would receive a subsidy to allow them to lower fare costs and thus increase their usage.

Pretty soon, usage of personally-owned vehicles in said urban environment would become rare, and subsidized taxi rides would be the norm. This would be a next step in urban transit, beyond Metro subways.