Self-driving cars will change a lot of things, including how we travel and work, but experts say the biggest impact might be where people choose to get it on.

University of Surrey researchers reviewed a number of studies and wrote about their findings in a paper published in the Annals (he said annals, heh heh) of Tourism Research.

They found the potential implications of autonomous vehicles (AVs) include how they'll reshape urban tourism, including how they'll revolutionize red light districts, putting prostitution on wheels.

One recent study concluded that nearly 60% of all Americans have had sex in a car. This time-worn tradition may only increase when you consider that self-driving cars are essentially private rooms on wheels.

Researcher Scott Cohen adds, "Particularly in cities where the governance is in place, where prostitution is legal, and regulations allow AVs to develop fast and be on roads quickly, we could see this come together rapidly. Europe is one of those places." He adds that since the new study published car makers may begin to rethink their cabin design based on demand, and predicts sex in AVs will start in, "The 2040s ...but if we think this through in the moment, a mobile red light district doesn't require all the cars around it, or a majority of cars around it, to be autonomous... There's no reason it couldn't happen earlier."

And thinking about the long term big picture, what about AVs will providing new forms of competition for hotels and restaurants. People will be sleeping in their vehicles, which has implications for roadside hotels. And people may be eating in vehicles that function as restaurant pods.

More here.

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