Current location:business >>
Waymo's robotaxi service expands into Los Angeles, starting free rides in parts of the city
business316People have gathered around
IntroductionWayMo's driverless taxi service expands to streets of LA 01:41 ...
Robotaxis will begin cruising the streets of Los Angeles on Thursday when Google spinoff Waymo starts offering free rides to some of the roughly 50,000 people who have signed up for its driverless ride-hailing service.
Waymo is expanding into Los Angeles, the second largest U.S. city, seven months after California regulators authorized its robotaxis to begin charging for around-the-clock rides throughout San Francisco. That came despite objections from local officials who asserted the driverless vehicles posed unacceptable risks to public safety.
Although Waymo isn't charging for rides in its robotaxis in Los Angeles to start, the company said in a blog post announcing the expansion that it will eventually collect fares from passengers there too. Waymo also hopes to begin commercial operations in Austin, Texas, later this year, a goal that makes its robotaxi service available in four major U.S. cities 15 years after it began as a secret project within Google. Waymo's robotaxis have been charging for rides in Phoenix since 2020.
For now, Waymo's free rides in Los Angeles will cover a 63-square-mile (101-square-kilometer) area spanning from Santa Monica to downtown.
Waymo is launching operations in Los Angeles two weeks after the California Public Utilities Commission approved the expansion in a decision that once again overrode the concerns of city transportation officials about robotaxis coming to sudden stops that block roads and the potential for driverless vehicles to malfunction in more serious ways that could jeopardize lives.
The worst fears about robotaxis were realized in San Francisco last October when a vehicle operated by Cruise, a driverless ride-hailing service owned by General Motors, dragged a pedestrian who was hit by another car operated by a human for 20 feet (6 meters) while traveling at roughly 7 mph (11 kph) before coming to a stop. The incident resulted in California regulators suspending Cruise's state license and triggered a massive shakeup at that service.
Waymo's robotaxis so far haven't been involved in any major accidents.
More from CBS News
Tags:
Reprint:Friends are welcome to share on the Internet, but please indicate the source of the article when reprinting it.“International Iterations news portal”。http://www.videocameralive.com/html-84e399883.html
Related articles
5 takeaways from the global negotiations on a treaty to end plastic pollution
businessOTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — The world’s nations finished a round of negotiations early Tuesday on a treat ...
【business】
Read moreTCM Widely Applied in COVID
businessContact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom ...
【business】
Read moreChinese Procurators Help Schools Promote Legal Work, Campus Security
businessContact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom ...
【business】
Read more
Popular articles
- DAILY MAIL COMMENT: A very good day for our united kingdom
- China Commends Outstanding Grass
- Remote Daliang Mountain in SW China Sees Departure of First Bullet Train
- China Focus: China Works to Meet Demand for Elderly Nursing Care Beds
- Confidence of US consumers continues to decline as Americans worry about the future
- China to Boost Green Shift in Cities and Villages: Ministry
Latest articles
‘Kraven the Hunter’ release delayed until December
China to Launch TCM Pilot Projects on Myopia Prevention
China's Woman Astronaut Sends Int'l Women's Day Greetings from Space
Team China Wins Bronze in Women's 3000m Relay
Paris Olympic athletes to feast on freshly baked bread, select cheeses and plenty of veggie options
Zero Tolerance for Sexual Assault Against Minors: Top Procuratorate
LINKS
- Subsidies Aim to Encourage More Births
- China Focus: China Steps up Protecting Vulnerable Groups amid COVID
- Winter Fishing
- Technicians Dispatched to Apply Agricultural Technology in Xingye County, S China's Guangxi
- China Actively Optimizes COVID
- China Focus: China Steps up Protecting Vulnerable Groups amid COVID
- Experts Discuss Progress of Chinese Women at UNESCO Forum
- Tibet's Rural Residents Enjoy Improved Livelihood over Past Decade
- China Starts Pilot Program to Build Better Urban Communities
- Across China: Education Paves Broader Way for Students in Former China Revolutionary Base