BMV Reveals The First Driverless Motorcycle

Right now, driverless cars are becoming increasingly popular. Despite several notable controversies, the driverless vehicle is almost certainly the future. Forms of driverless cars are already available on the market and have been on the roads for the last couple of years. Tesla, Audi, BMW and many more of the well-known brands have all been pushing forward with this tech, searching for the next step forward.

We’re not quite at the point yet, where cars are truly autonomous. Instead, the vehicles are only partially self-driving. As Tesla has frequently pointed out, drivers are encouraged and often forced to put their hands on the wheel of their self-driving cars. Failure to do this will cause the vehicle to shut down and stop at the side of the road. This should provide a clear idea of just how confident the producers are of the safety for the tech they are marketing.

You might be surprised to learn though that self-driving cars is just the beginning. Producers are also toying with the concept of self-driving trucks, self-driving planes and even self-driving motorcycles. A few months ago, BMW announced the first ever self-driving motorcycle, capable of riding without the need for a driver.

BMV Reveals The First Driverless Motorcycle

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What Is It?

The self-driving motorcycle in question is the R1200 GS model. It’s no surprise that BMW chose this particular bike. It was incredibly popular when it was first launched and still is to this day. It’s known for boh comfort, durability and, being a BMW - insane levels of speed.

The new model based on the same design was developed by graduated engineer Stefan Hans. Along with his team, they successfully created and designed a BMW bike that could drive completely independently from a driver.

At a recent demonstration, the bike was shown to be able to drive off and accelerate to reach a high speed. The bike then circled around a test track before finally coming to a stop. The vehicle and indeed its performance is remarkably impressive. You can see the full spectacular display in the vehicle below.

Will This Lead To Safer Roads?

According to motorcycle accident lawyers, issues with these vehicles on the roads are remarkably common. While not death traps, accidents on bikes can occur easily and lead to life-changing injuries. Many of the issues are caused by human error so any talk of driverless or in this case riderless vehicles is praised as a safety revolution. However, it may not be the case here.

BMW have stressed that the vehicle was purely designed to build buzz and work with technology that could be suitable for other vehicles. In other words, the chances of soon seeing drivers ride motorbikes with no hands in the near future are slim.

However, that doesn’t mean that we should dismiss the idea completely. After all, the possibilities are endless. Food deliveries are becoming more popular thanks to services like Uber Eats. It’s only a matter of time before these companies realize the potential of vehicles that don’t need drivers and can zip in and out of traffic.