- Google self-driving spinoff Waymo is now offering robotaxi rides to the public in San Francisco.
- Waymo’s Trusted Tester program will let residents hail a ride in an all-electric Jaguar vehicle.
- All of the rides will still have a back-up driver onboard to take the wheel in case of emergencies.
San Francisco residents are now able to hail a ride in a self-driving taxi.
Waymo launched its Trusted Tester program on Tuesday, allowing San Franciscans to get to their destinations in an all-electric, self-driving Jaguar I-PACE vehicle. The SUVs are equipped with the fifth generation of Waymo’s autonomous driving technology, called Waymo Driver.
“Through the Trusted Tester program, we’ll help San Francisco residents expand their mobility options while complementing the city’s robust public transportation infrastructure,” the company said in a press release announcing the program. “We can’t wait to hear from more San Franciscans as they experience the Waymo Driver themselves.”
The company has been testing self-driving technology in San Francisco for more than a decade, but this is the first time it will offer such rides to the public there. Residents can book rides through the Waymo One app.
Waymo, which began as Google’s self-driving car project, says people in San Francisco can hail the taxis “for their everyday needs anywhere they want to go in our initial service area.” All of the robotaxis will still have a trained back-up driver onboard to take over driving in case of emergencies.
Waymo began the Trusted Tester program last week with a few people. The current expansion will stretch to include all locals who are interested, starting with a smaller group first and branching out to more riders in the coming weeks. In exchange for the rides, which are free, users will give feedback on the Waymo One app, pick-up, drop-off, and the ride in between.
Waymo added that rides in wheelchair-accessible vehicles are also available in the program.
This isn’t the first time Waymo has offered robotaxi rides to the public. The company started offering autonomous rides in the Phoenix metro area in 2017. This ride-hailing service went fully driverless in Phoenix last year, when Waymo took human safety drivers out of vehicles running in the area. Earlier this year, one of these rides went awry and blocked traffic. At the time, the company said, “Our team has already assessed the event and improved our operational process.”