Automotive enthusiasts often shudder when they imagine a world where cars drive themselves, but I don’t think that necessarily needs to be the case. We already have cars that drive themselves in some cities, including one where I live, and honestly I’m a proponent of the technology if it takes inattentive, impatient, impulsive, and potentially impaired drivers off of public roads. One of the most well-known robotaxi companies, Waymo, announced today that its autonomous Jaguar i-Paces will officially be capable of taking riders on freeways in the San Francisco Bay Area, in Los Angeles, California and Phoenix, Arizona.
Waymos have completed over 50 million miles of driverless rides across its service areas, and yet its crash statistics are remarkably low. In fact, Ars Technica reviewed Waymo’s crash data and found that the vast majority of crashes involving a Waymo were caused by other cars rear-ending, side swiping, and crossing the centerline to hit the autonomous vehicles.
Waymo’s expansion continues
Beyond todays announcement of freeway access, Waymo also announced that it is expanding its service area beyond San Francisco proper, and now to the entire Peninsula including service to the cities of San Bruno, San Mateo, San Carlos, Palo Alto, Redwood City, Mountain View, all the way down to San Jose. This expanded service includes curbside service at San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC).
Waymo plans to expand freeway capabilities to its driverless cars in other regions including Austin Texas and Atlanta Georgia soon, but for now it’s limited to the California Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Phoenix. Though these regions remain largely temperate throughout most of the calendar year, winter approaches and will likely bring with it an array of weather-related surprises. Thanks to our continued love affair with fossil fuels, seasons and weather systems have intensified over the past few years, which could prove challenging for these computer-driven cars to navigate safely.
