Waymo has officially launched its full self-driving taxi service to the public in Los Angeles. The company’s announcement, confirmed in a blog post, marks the commencement of operations on March 14, following approval from the California Public Utilities Commission earlier this month.
The service will cover a 63-square mile area of the city, extending from Santa Monica to Downtown and including neighborhoods like Century City, Westwood, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, and Koreatown. Initial rides will be free, with Waymo planning to transition to a paid model in the near future.
Waymo has already garnered significant interest, with over 50,000 people signed up on its waitlist. The company is currently onboarding these individuals and providing temporary codes to other potential customers.
Tekedra Mawakana, Waymo’s co-CEO, expressed excitement about the progress, stating, “Once an unimaginable future, autonomous driving is now a real-world way of getting around for tens of thousands of people each week.”
Waymo has been gradually expanding its presence in Los Angeles over the past year, conducting autonomous rides in converted Jaguar I-Pace SUVs and accumulating valuable on-road experience. The company claims to have completed 15,000 autonomous rides in the city, earning a customer satisfaction rating of 4.7 out of 5.
Los Angeles is now the third city where Waymo operates a commercial service, following San Francisco and Phoenix, Arizona. The company also revealed plans to launch a service in Austin, where it is currently testing fully autonomous rides with employees across 43 square miles, with intentions to extend the service to the public later this year.
