NEW ORLEANS – In 1901, author H. G. Wells prophesized the future of society and transportation, where “special roads” will be “very different from macadamized roads; they will be used only by soft-tired conveyances.” He also teased to the advent of the steam engine operating on a railway and the rise of automobiles such as trucks and buses. All of which he said would transpire in the coming years — but he probably didn’t think it would take the better part of a century for it all to occur.

Wells’ book, Anticipations of the Reaction of Mechanical and Scientific Progress upon Human Life and Thought, anticipated many of the things we take for granted today. But could he have foreseen today’s social climate? And what would he have predicted for the 21st Century? Michael Rogers, a practical futurist and frequent speaker at NACS events, attempted to “put himself in H. G.’s shoes” this week at the Fuels Institute Spring Meeting – and looked at what may separate science fiction from science fact over the next two decades.

Addressing the future of transportation into the early 2020s, Rogers looked at current and potential technologies that are moving the needle on future trends, beginning with an examination of what Wells himself would say today if we asked him about the future of fuels.

Since Wells was a science fiction writer and technology buff, he would probably fall in love with the potential of hydrogen as a fuel. However, he’d probably see it as too expensive – a current view that is rapidly changing. As for natural gas, Wells would find it to be an attractive option, but probably not a long-term, stable supply. Rogers went through the list, from electricity to batteries and plug-in hybrids, leading up to one concept: virtualization.

So much of what consumers do each day relating to commerce, relationships and the workplace, is moving online, noted Rogers, adding that we’re now at a pivotal point where more time is being spent in a virtual environment than ever before – and our virtual lives are expanding with each new technology that comes to market.

“By 2022, we’ll have to teach kids what ‘offline’ means,” said Rogers, adding that losing the Internet is considered worse than losing electricity to the younger generations (Millennials and Gen Z).

From Google Glass to telepresence workspaces, where offices hundreds of miles away can interact virtually as if they’re in the same physical space, Rogers gave insights into how technology is moving into more highly connected environments — including automobiles.

Wells would be very impressed with the autonomous (“self-driving”) car, noted Rogers, where technology takes the wheel, literally. By some accounts, networked cars could be on the road by 2020, with the ability to improve passenger and road safety, reduce harmful emissions and make driving more accessible for the elderly and people with disabilities. Vehicle platooning of networked cars, an emerging concept from Europe, would make it possible for smart vehicles to access special lanes on freeways and create a train-like system that alleviates traffic congestion, improves safety and gives the physical act of driving to technology instead of a human.

Self-driving vehicles and the rise of the virtual world may sound far-fetched, or at least far into the future from where we sit today, but so did the theories about transportation and society presented by H. G. Wells in 1901. There has been no other time in history where technology is altering as quickly as it is today, suggested Rogers.

And some of those changes may dramatically affect the fueling and transportation industries. Imagine, Rogers said, if future generations work remotely. The notion of commutes today – where everyone drives on the same roads at the same time, wasting both time and fuel, could be seen as incredibly underproductive in an online world of tomorrow where work comes to you, as opposed to the other way around.

The 2015 Fuels Institute Spring Meeting wraps up today in New Orleans. Look for complete event coverage in the June issue of NACS Magazine.  For more information about the Fuels Institute and its research visit fuelsinstitute.org.