What's the news?
Ford's conducted a Europe-wide survey of 5,000 adults to find out how they would spend their time if they were travelling in a self-driving car - and most of them would be looking out of the window, admiring the scenery.
Four in five said they would simply relax if the car was doing all the donkey work, another 72 per cent said they would catch up with their nearest and dearest by chatting on the phone, and 64 per cent would have a bite to eat. Some respondents even said they'd have a nap.
Perhaps most amazingly of all, 16 per cent of the respondents said they'd pack the kids off to school on their own in the automated motor - perhaps spelling the end of the 'school-run parents'.
The survey further showed that European drivers spend up to ten days each year in their cars, the results following up on earlier research that suggested people living in big cities found their commute more stressful than their job.
The latest Ford survey showed autonomous vehicles would be preferred over traditional cars if people were heading out for drinks or commuting, while half the people questioned felt driverless cars would be safer.
Anything else?
"People are really beginning to think about exactly what autonomous vehicles could mean to their day-to-day lives," said Thomas Lukaszewicz, manager for automated driving, Ford of Europe. "Many of us neglect time for ourselves and for our loved ones in the face of other demands. Self-driving cars will revolutionise the way we live, as well as the way we travel.
"We have already announced plans to use an autonomous vehicle for a ride-sharing service in the US in 2021 and it is important that we extend our testing to Europe. Rules of the road vary from country to country here, traffic signs and road layouts are different, and drivers are likely to share congested roads with cyclists."