The road to fully autonomous vehicles is long and marred by technological challenges, from the cost of developing the technology and commercial expansion, all the way through public acceptance and safety concerns. And that's if people even want to give up driving in the first place. But there's something that can help this transition, that can bridge the divide between the autonomous believers and self-driving sceptics: remote-controlled vehicles. And no, we're not talking about toy cars, these are real, adult-sized, remotely-driven automobiles. In this piece, I'm going to explain how they work, the commercial and technological implications, and if they can help ease us into an autonomous future.

NAGOYA – In the first test of its kind in Japan, a remote-controlled vehicle was tested Thursday on a public road in Aichi Prefecture, home to Toyota Motor Corp. and other auto firms. For the government-conducted test, the minivan traveled along a 700-meter road in the town of Kota with no one in the driver's seat and an assistant in the passenger seat. The route and traffic signs had been "memorized" by the system ahead of time. A member of the testing team operated the minivan remotely from nearby Kota Community Hall with the aid of video transmitted by the van's onboard camera. The assistant was present to stop the car in case of an emergency.