Nearly a year after Waymo launched its autonomous taxi service in Los Angeles, the company is ready to hit the freeways.
Waymo announced Wednesday it will begin accepting customers at freeways within its 120-square-mile service area in Los Angeles, as well as the San Francisco Bay area and Phoenix. The company conducted tests on Los Angeles freeways. with safe drivers since the beginning of this year.
Expanding freeways can attract new customers and attract commuters traveling long distances. Waymo cars already transports customers in Southern California through several areas adjacent to the freeway, including Santa Monica, Culver City and downtown Los Angeles.
“It’s been a long time coming, and I’m thrilled to start delivering highways to our riders,” Waymo co-CEO Dmitry Dolgov said at a media event. “Doing this properly, with a focus on system safety and reliability, took time.”
The operation of the freeway is supported by robust safety protocols and the same artificial intelligence This provides Waymo's ability to manage urban transportation, the company says. The company says the AI is ready to handle the unique demands and variables of highway driving.
In his announcementThe company also said it is expanding its Bay Area coverage to include San Jose, providing more than 260 square miles of uninterrupted service throughout the region.
The new service in San Jose will include curbside pick-up and drop-off at San Jose Mineta International Airport.
The only other airport you can get to via Waymo is Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix.
Late last month, Tesla announced its robotaxi service will be expanded to include San Jose Airport. Tesla launched robotaxi in Austin, Texas earlier this year.
Together with Zoox, a self-driving car startup owned by Amazon, Tesla and Waymo are aiming to put more self-driving cars on the road and prove that the technology is safe and convenient.
Waymo has already completed millions of miles of driverless rides in cities like Austin and Atlanta. The company said it will soon expand to Miami and Washington, D.C.
Waymo began as Google's Self-Driving Car Project, which began in 2009 and put its first autonomous car on the road in 2015. In 2016, the project was renamed Waymo under Google parent company Alphabet, and in 2020 it launched a self-driving car-hailing service known as Waymo One.
