Alphabet-owned autonomous driving company Waymo has launched new mapping operations in Philadelphia and New York City, in a move that signals continued interest in expanding its self-driving services to the U.S. Northeast.
The initiative is part of Waymo’s ongoing strategy to introduce its technology to new cities through what it calls “road trips” — deployments of manually driven vehicles equipped with its autonomous driving systems to gather street data and test mapping capabilities. While these trips do not mark the immediate start of commercial operations, they often serve as the first step toward potential future rollouts.
“For Philadelphia, you’ll see us driving at all hours throughout various neighborhoods, from North Central to Eastwick, University City, and as far east as the Delaware River,” a Waymo spokesperson said.
In New York, Waymo vehicles will operate manually across Manhattan — from just north of Central Park to The Battery — as well as in Downtown Brooklyn, Jersey City, and Hoboken. The company submitted an application in June to test its autonomous vehicles in New York with a safety driver, though it has not yet received regulatory approval.
This marks Waymo’s second known deployment in the New York metro area. A limited mapping effort was conducted in 2021, and earlier this year, the company tested its technology in Buffalo to assess performance in winter conditions.
Though the company is seeking permission to test autonomous vehicles with a safety operator, local rules currently prohibit fully driverless operation in New York City. Waymo is advocating for regulatory changes to enable the deployment of vehicles without a human in the front seat.
The two new road trips follow similar missions earlier in 2024 to cities including Houston, Orlando, San Diego, San Antonio, and Las Vegas. While not all mapping trips result in operational services, some have led to commercial rollouts. In 2023, Waymo visited Santa Monica, and now operates a paid robotaxi service across several Los Angeles neighborhoods.
Currently, Waymo’s commercial autonomous vehicle services are active in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Atlanta. The company plans to begin operations in Miami later this year and Washington, D.C. in 2026.
