Are robotaxis the future? Or now in the past?
Are robotaxis the future? Or now in the past?
Waymo is fortunate to have a better reputation than the rest, but their incident rate is still not acceptable…
Three additional California bills to regulate AVs have been sent to committee and need your support. This post contains simple instructions on how to send letters of support and provides templates, making it really easy for you to help.
Newsletter from Sue Vaughan from Burning Planet. Contains autonomous vehicle legislation updates and information on how you can provide support.
Article from WSJ on how Waymo will soon be expanding to driverless service on freeways in Phoenix. This is of course key for providing more lucrative airport service. But driving at freeway speeds is of course inherently more dangerous.
Article from TechCrunch on Waymo starting service in Los Angeles this week, and in Austin by end of the year.
Article from Forbes on how on March 14th Waymo will launch robotaxi service in Los Angeles. Will be limited at first, but then expand. This comes at a time when other companies, in particular Cruise, are facing setbacks.
Article from SF Standard on new laws on autonomous vehicles moving through California legislature. The newest proposed law is by Assemblymember Matt Haney and is for requiring additional data reporting from from autonomous vehicle companies.
Article from SF Chronicle explaining that though the CPUC granted Waymo permission to serve the peninsula, Waymo still needs permission from SFO to serve the airport. Also, Waymo does not have a timeline for expanding to cover the peninsula. Plus Waymo doesn't currently provide autonomous service on freeways yet due to safety issues.
In a surprising turnabout, the CPUC granted Waymo permission to expand service to the Bay Area peninsula and to most of Los Angeles. This still does not allow Waymo to provide service to the SFO airport though.
This article is only of interest because it shows how drastically robotaxi plans have changed over the last few years. Waymo purchased from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (now Stellantis) 100 minivans in 2016 and then another 500 in 2017. In January 2018 it was announced that Waymo was ordering "thousands" of minivans for a 2018 self-driving fleet rollout. In August 2018 it was announced that Stellantis was going to supply (up to) 62,000 minivans to Waymo/Google. But that is all just a distant memory.
Robotaxi disruptions for emergency responders have fallen significantly for the last 6 months. This is due to Cruise suspending operations, and because Waymo is now more careful to avoid geolocated incidences. Also, Waymo now gives emergency responders ability to manually move a vehicle.
Waymo was hoping to soon expand its robotaxi service in Los Angeles and San Mateo, which would include San Francisco Airport. But the CPUC regulators ruled that their application for expansion has been suspended for 120 days, until June 2024.
A coalition of San Francisco residents, safety advocates and workers is demanding Gov. Gavin Newsom immediately ban self-driving taxis, accusing the companies that operate them of endangering public safety. Waymo counters with statements from disability groups (to whom Waymo donated generously). Taxi drivers explain that people with disabilities often need a driver to help.
The recent torching of a Waymo robotaxi shows that there simply is no smooth sailing for the company. Sure, they might drive somewhat better than Cruise vehicles. But they still have serious flaws that show that long term viability is doubtful. Plus they do stupid things, and when they do they are quite vulnerable. Therefore they have now become the target of robotaxi ire.
Article from the Verge by Andrew J. Hawkins on why we don't have the autonomous vehicles we were promised. The excellent article presents not only the history of the development of autonomous vehicles, but also why it has taken so long, why the predictions have been so far off (especially with Tesla), and why so much money has been thrown at the technology.
On December 11th 2023 San Francisco sued California's Public Utilities Commission to limit robotaxis, following safety incidents with autonomous vehicles (AVs) like those from Cruise and Waymo. The suit seeks to review and revoke permits that allowed unchecked expansion and demands better safety measures and regulations. Although Cruise lost its permits, Waymo, expanding to LA, remains affected. Waymo has challenged the city's appeal, emphasizing its commitment to safe operations.
