It’s an idea that’s emerged from the depths of sci-fi to become a nearly-mainstream reality: the completely driverless car. Computerized, driver-free cars have been popping up at car shows over the last few years, complete with laser sensors that can scan road conditions, buildings, other cars, and pedestrians. The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) even holds an annual 60-mile race for driverless cars, known as the Urban Challenge.

While many drivers balk at the idea of handing their power over to a computer, there’s plenty to be said for automobile transportation without the risk of human error that causes hundreds of thousands of fatal accidents per year.

But can these “cars of the future” handle long distance travel? This week, a team of Italian engineers have launched what they claim is the longest-ever test drive of driverless vehicles: an 8,000-mile road trip from Italy to China. The trip will take a total of three months, and will, alas, require several human technicians along the way. [SButtonZ button="digg"]

From the AP via the Huffington Post:

Two bright orange vehicles, equipped with laser scanners and cameras that work in concert to detect and help avoid obstacles, are to brave the traffic of Moscow, the summer heat of Siberia and the bitter cold of the Gobi desert before the planned arrival in Shanghai at the end of October….

The road trip consists of two pairs of vehicles, each with a driven lead van followed by a driverless vehicle occupied by two technicians, whose job is to fix glitches and take over the wheel in case of an emergency.

The driverless vehicle takes cues from the lead van, but will have to respond to any ordinary obstacles or dangers. The two pairs alternate stretches along the route to China.

“We will definitely need some help by humans. It is not possible to have 100 percent driverless. This is why I call it a test, not a demonstration,” Broggi said.

The fact that such a trip will require so much time and effort shows just how far we still have to go before driverless cars are a daily reality. Still, the idea of driverless cross-continental trips could have major implications for international trade and transport — just imagine how many goods and people we could move if we didn’t need to rely exclusively on human drivers? Plus we’d make a crack about the benefits of getting Italian drivers off the road, but that would just be too easy.

Tags: cars of the future, eliminating human error, Innovation