Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford has highlighted the opportunities ahead for the auto industry presented by advanced technologies, but also warned of the dangers of ‘global gridlock’ as the numbers of vehicles in use across the world continues to rise.
Speaking to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce today, Ford said that the auto industry now has an opportunity that it could not have imagined ten or twenty years ago. “All of the computing power and connectivity that makes cars smart, that connects vehicles to the world around them, is capable of doing much more,” he said. “It can help us tackle broader issues such as public health or economic opportunity.”
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He cited the example of India and its struggles with providing healthcare in rural communities.
“We initiated a project there and invited developer and ‘maker’ communities to come together and develop new ideas.
“One of those resulted in a program that puts our vehicles in the rural villages of India to improve the health of expecting mothers. The driver collects and loads medical data from a patient into the vehicle’s computer, and uses its wireless connectivity to send the data to a medical professional in the city. The woman’s prenatal condition then is able to be monitored remotely, vastly improving the chances of a healthier mother and child.
“To date, we have helped provide healthcare to more than 1,600 women and children; helped set up 27 health camps; and reached another 54 villages to facilitate maternal and child health awareness.”
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By GlobalDataFord also noted that cars can help strengthen a country’s infrastructure. “For example, in developing nations that do not have accurate mapping of their own roadways, vehicles that transport rural medical aid can be equipped with sensors to map the rural roads as they drive. This is important for many reasons, including economic growth. Complete, accurate maps help with commerce because they keep things moving.”
Turning to developed nations, Ford highlighted the problems that arise from ageing populations and how autonomous vehicles could help in the future.
“Many developed nations are facing an issue called the ‘grey dawn’, with ageing populations and the average age increasing. It has significant implications in several areas, such as the resources required to provide care and to get the elderly to where they need to be. Elderly people feel the loss of independence when they can no longer drive.
“But what if autonomous driving could extend the driving life of the elderly? What if this technology could enable them to maintain the personal freedom that comes from mobility? Imagine how that could improve their quality of life, and reduce some of the dependency on caregivers.
“As technology quickly evolves, we must push ourselves to look for new opportunities to solve bigger issues. This is the next challenge before us. We must find ways that mobility can improve the human condition.”
However, Ford also warned that rising numbers of cars and other vehicles on the world’s roads are causing serious problems.
“For most of my adult life, I worried about, “How am I going to sell more cars and trucks?” But today, I worry about, “What happens if all we do is sell more cars and trucks?”
“What happens when the number of vehicles on the road doubles, triples or even quadruples?
“Our industry has made some of its greatest achievements when faced with a serious challenge. This is one of those moments.”
Ford pointed out the nature of the numbers problem. “Today there are almost 7 billion people in the world. Within our lifetime, that number will grow to about nine billion.
“And we will be living more closely together. Some reports predict that by 2025 more than half the world’s population will live in megacities of 10 million residents or more.
“When we look at population growth in terms of vehicles, the problem becomes even more pronounced. Today there are about one billion vehicles on the road worldwide. But with more people and greater global prosperity, that number is expected to double, and possibly double again, by 2050.
“This will create ‘global gridlock’ on a scale the world has never seen before.”
The solution? Ford boldly acknowledges that selling more cars will ultimately make things worse.
“The answer is not more of the same. My great-grandfather once said that before he invented the Model T, ‘If I had asked people then what they wanted, they would have answered ‘faster horses.”
“Today we need that same leap in thinking to preserve mobility worldwide. The answer is not more roads.
“Cars and trucks today are being built with increasingly more powerful microprocessors. You see the technology when you get behind the wheel of a new vehicle. We are equipping cars and trucks with new technologies that improve the driving experience, guide you to your destination, manage the car’s functions and keep you and your passengers entertained.
“So we are building smart cars, and they will continue to get smarter. But we also need to build smart roads, smart parking, smart public transportation systems and more – and we need to connect them all using wireless telecommunications. Why? Because when you link the vehicle to the world around it, you begin to attack global gridlock.
“To keep traffic moving, we need an integrated transportation network that uses real time data to optimise personal mobility on a massive scale.”
Ford finished his address with a historical family anecdote to illustrate the deep nature of the challenges ahead for the automotive industry and future mobility.
“On a summer night in 1896, after years of experimenting, Henry Ford finished building his first car. In his moment of triumph, he discovered the car was too big to make it through the door of his workshop.
“At that moment, he could have chosen to give up; but he did not. Instead, and without hesitation, he took a sledgehammer and knocked down his garage wall and went out for a test drive on the streets of Detroit.
“It is time now to stretch our own imaginations and set our goals higher. It is time to knock down some new brick walls. In doing so, we will preserve and enhance our incredible freedom of mobility, and the quality of our lives.”
