I agree with what the sibling comments said regarding fines, and it would be interesting to see statistics before/after Germany introduced hefty fines/penalties for not keeping the required distance relative to speed.

One problem I've observed with uncoordinated speeds on German Autobahns is drivers who seemingly switch to their left lane without noticing a faster vehicle approaching which then has to brake suddenly which in itself is a danger to everyone. Out of anything, I feel like autonomous vehicles with coordination will make lives less stressful.

Day fines could work.

For those who don't know the term: it is using fines proportional to the amount of money one has available for spending on a day, as they do in Finland, where speeding tickets can go over $100,000 for the very affluent (http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/03/finland-...)

Yes, you cannot hope to reach complete equality of the impact a fine has on the drivers, but you cannot do that with demerit points, either. A driver who needs his car to make a living will likely be affected stronger than a driver who has a decent alternative.

Sure, but there have to be lower and upper limits to it. Or would you want a rich guy to pay $750k? Hmm, maybe there shouldn't be an upper limit.