Autonomous driving: Google sister company allowed to expand robotaxi service in California

Google sister company Waymo is allowed to expand its robotaxi service from San Francisco to Silicon Valley and parts of Los Angeles. A California regulator (PDF) approved commercial travel in a large area south of San Francisco to Sunnyvale, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) away, which includes the San Francisco airport and Google headquarters in Mountain View.

Previously, Waymo was allowed to transport passengers in self-driving cars without people behind the wheel in the San Francisco metropolitan area. Waymo recently has around 250 cars in use there, all converted electric cars from Jaguar.

However, Waymo has so far stated that there are currently no plans to immediately expand the range of use of the vehicles.

Accidents and mishaps

There is resistance to self-driving cars in the San Francisco region: authorities and residents complain that the vehicles hinder traffic and are not safe enough. For example, emergency services complain that robotaxis have sometimes stopped in the middle of the road and blocked their path. Transit companies in San Francisco also reported similar problems for their buses.

A few weeks ago, a Waymo car (PDF) was set on fire by vandals during Chinese New Year celebrations and was completely burned out.

General Motors’ competitor Cruise has to forego a similar permit for trips in San Francisco as Waymo has for the time being – it was withdrawn after an accident in October. At that time, a woman was hit by another car with a person behind the wheel and thrown in front of the cruise vehicle. She got stuck under the robotaxi and was dragged by it for several meters.

General Motors replaced management at Cruise after the accident. The robotaxi service is now only to be started again in one city. Plans for a cruise vehicle without a steering wheel or pedals were abandoned.

Google sister company Waymo is allowed to expand its robotaxi service from San Francisco to Silicon Valley and parts of Los Angeles. A California regulator (PDF) approved commercial travel in a large area south of San Francisco to Sunnyvale, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) away, which includes the San Francisco airport and Google headquarters in Mountain View.

Previously, Waymo was allowed to transport passengers in self-driving cars without people behind the wheel in the San Francisco metropolitan area. Waymo recently has around 250 cars in use there, all converted electric cars from Jaguar.

SOURCE