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But isn't automation only a source of de-skilling and alienation when we fail to pre-empt the job losses allow a portion of the workforce to become redundant. You're forgetting that new skills come into existence all the time. Afterall, when the original combine harvester was put into production, resulting in a loss of agricultural jobs, how many flight engineers or computer programmers were there?
And yes, there could well be less active travel. But isn't that already happening? With a net decrease in the cost of motoring and a rise in car ownership, haven't we already seen a persistent decrease in active travel? Do you really think that the lack of automation in cars will lead to that decrease stalling? I'm not convinced. And is there anything that has actually shown an increase in active travel? For instance, do you think that by implementing cycle friendly road infrastructure, the Netherlands were able to preserve active travel and by installing the same sort of infrastructure has London been able to facilitate a return to active travel? I think that this is the case. The question that then remains is whether the advance of automation in vehicular transport will give us the opportunity to redesign our road network to allow for more infrastructure that facilitates active travel?
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The_Seldom_Killer
My main concern here isn't so much about automation (which is a problem, because it causes de-skilling and alienation), but the attempts by these companies to erect global oligopolies or even monopolies. A separate worry is about self-driving cars causing ever less active travel, which I believe is a certainty, but that applies more generally and not only to Uber.