Waymo expands to Daly City, Broadmoor and Colma
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A Waymo car drives around San Francisco in June. Photo: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
Waymo is expanding its robotaxi service area to include Daly City, Broadmoor and Colma, the company announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: The expansion marks the first time the self-driving rideshare company will serve customers in the Peninsula.
Driving the news: Riders can hail a Waymo driverless vehicle starting Tuesday from anywhere in San Francisco through Colma.
- The expansion brings Waymo's total Bay Area service coverage to 55 square miles.
Between the lines: This growth, however, does not include freeway driving, Waymo spokesperson Christopher Bonelli told Axios.
- In March, Waymo received approval to expand its paid robotaxi services to San Francisco freeways and other highways in the Bay Area. For now, the company is still testing its vehicles with a safety driver on Bay Area freeways, Bonelli said.
- That means Waymo will take surface streets for any trips outside of San Francisco heading south.
Zoom out: Waymo on Wednesday is expanding its service in the Los Angeles area, as well, covering Marina del Rey, Mar Vista, Playa Vista and other parts of Hollywood, Chinatown and Westwood.
Threat level: The rollout of autonomous vehicles in San Francisco has been controversial.
- Waymo competitor Cruise, for example, lost its permits to operate in the city after one of its vehicles dragged a pedestrian 20 feet last year.
- Meanwhile, federal safety investigators in May opened a preliminary investigation into dozens of incidents involving Waymo's driverless vehicles.
What they're saying: Waymo maintains its decision to expand service followed "the careful and multilayered approach to safety set out in our safety framework," the company wrote in a blog post.
What to watch: Waymo still doesn't have a timeline for when it will make pickups and dropoffs at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), Bonelli said.
- The company has had "preliminary discussions" with SFO to begin non-commercial mapping and driving operations with a safety driver and plans to proceed "in a phased and collaborative manner."