Precision positioning, using correction data similar to WAAS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Area_Augmentation_System) but heavily localized can provide sub-centimeter positioning data. This is already in use today for agriculture (self-driving combines, with waypoints configured from the farmer's desktop at home).
> A more likely scenario in my mind is Drone trucks. Why can't a trucker head to the office drive his truck from his desk then go home at night?
UAVs can stay flying if a signal is lost, or navigate using GPS to the nearest friendly runway to autoland if they lose touch with their pilot in the Las Vegas area (where most UAVs are piloted from). Ground vehicles traveling 60+ mph do not have this option. Therefore, AI is a superior option.
I don't know what gps resolves to but it's definitely not down to the foot that's required for some of the hairy situations truckers encounter on the road and our visual learning technology is terribly insufficient for even the most basic road conditions much less your average New England construction zone.
Even google cars can't handle weather or potholes or unpredictable situations well. From what I read they had to be coded for very specific paths around San Fran and any unpredictability would cause them trouble.
A more likely scenario in my mind is Drone trucks. Why can't a trucker head to the office drive his truck from his desk then go home at night?
Combine that with some gps autopilot and/or magnetic strips in the road as a guide and that's totally realistic even with todays technology.
These are more likely scenarios.
Edit: even cooler would be autonomous or drone blimps carrying cargo!
http://rt.com/news/aeroscraft-revolutionary-airship-cargo-18...