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Waymo cars now on Los Angeles freeways
Waymo has begun offering select riders access to driverless taxi trips on Los Angeles freeways, expanding its autonomous service beyond surface streets.
LOS ANGELES - Driverless Waymo taxis have begun operating on Los Angeles freeways, marking a significant expansion of the autonomous ride-hailing service beyond surface streets and into highway traffic for the first time.
Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, recently started allowing select riders to travel on freeways and interstates in Los Angeles, joining similar rollouts already underway in San Francisco and Phoenix. The company says access will continue to expand gradually to more customers.
Harry Campbell, founder of The Driverless Digest, was among the first passengers to experience a driverless freeway ride in Los Angeles. Sitting in a vehicle with an empty driver’s seat, Campbell described the experience as familiar — but with higher speeds.
"It was kind of like riding a Waymo on the streets, except we happened to be on the freeway," Campbell said. "I was definitely excited."
Campbell said the vehicle stayed primarily in the right lanes and did not exceed the posted 65 mph speed limit. He also noted that during his ride, he did not see any other Waymo vehicles on the freeway.
"We kind of stayed toward the right side of the freeway. We never went over 65 mph," Campbell said. "I was watching the speed pretty carefully."
Waymo says the freeway expansion builds on the millions of miles its autonomous vehicles have already logged on city streets nationwide, though freeway driving introduces new variables, including higher speeds and denser traffic.
Not all riders currently have access. A FOX 11 attempt to request a Waymo freeway ride Sunday was unsuccessful. Waymo says only a portion of riders are enabled at this early stage.
Some drivers remain skeptical about sharing freeways with autonomous vehicles.
"It’s just more headaches than it’s worth right now," said Los Angeles driver David Ettehad. "I keep my distance. You never know how software is going to react. It’s only as good as its last update."
The expansion also comes amid recent scrutiny of Waymo operations in Los Angeles. In recent weeks, one Waymo vehicle drove through an active police standoff scene in downtown Los Angeles while officers had their guns drawn. In another incident near MacArthur Park, a woman reported finding a man inside the trunk of her Waymo vehicle.
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Man hides in truck of self-driving Waymo
A Los Angeles woman found a man hiding in the trunk of a self-driving Waymo.
For now, Waymo says its driverless taxis will adhere to posted freeway speed limits, though that could change as the technology evolves.
Campbell said he would rate his freeway experience positively; however, he does wish they could go faster than the posted speed limit.
"I would grade it a B-plus," he said. "The actual experience was pretty solid."
It remains unclear how many Waymo riders currently have access to freeway routes in Los Angeles, but the company says that number is expected to grow.
In a statement to FOX 11, a Waymo spokesperson said the company is excited to be serving riders on LA freeways, along with San Francisco and Phoenix. "Starting in mid-November, we’ve offered freeway access to a growing number of public riders and will introduce the service to more over time. Our LA service area spans Santa Monica to Echo Park and down to Inglewood, and we don’t have limitations on which freeway routes we can take."
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