Would you jump into a car that was parked on the side of the road to pick you up—without a driver in the driver’s seat? In fact, there was no one in the car at all.
If you wanted to, would you sit in the front passenger seat or in the back like a regular taxi?
I just got back to Santa Monica, LA and checked out some Lovely new restaurant and bar Worth visiting and was quite shocked to see these weird looking cars with spinning gigs on their roofs driving around.
As of June 2025, the number has exceeded 100 Waymo self-driving taxi Roam within 120 square miles of Los Angeles. They also have operations in Austin, San Francisco, Phoenix and Atlanta, with Miami and Washington, D.C. coming soon.
The company is owned by Google and partners with Jaguar and Toyota. The car is the electric Jaguar I-PACE.
The way to use them is to download the Waymo app like Uber and then use the app to hail a ride. You enter where up to 4 people want to go, and then when the destination arrives, you can use the app to unlock the door.
Once you're in the car and fastened, click “Start Ride” and a map will pop up on the screen so you can track your ride. You can also use the app to adjust the temperature, play your own music or podcasts or listen to the car's own playlist.
At this stage they wouldn't go to LAX or I might have had the guts to give them a try, but spoke to the manager at my hotel and he had already ridden them around Santa Monica. He said they were slow…they obeyed the traffic rules! No need to zip up the interior to bite into the gap where you can see ahead. They also obey the speed limit ;D
The car itself is full of bells and whistles. The gadget whirrs and the camera checks its surroundings at all times.
I will try it next time. Have you already attended one?
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