Fully autonomous ride-hailing service Waymo is aiming to deliver its vehicles into London in 2026.
The firm said it was “laying the groundwork” for its service in the city with fleet operations partner Moove, and it was “continuing to engage” to secure the permissions for its commercial ride-hailing service in London.
In the USA, the Waymo service has already driven more than one hundred million fully autonomous miles on public roads and provided more than ten million paid rides.
Waymo has strong ties to the United Kingdom with London and Oxford being home to its first international engineering hubs, which include teams advancing large-scale, closed-loop simulation. It also partners with Jaguar Land Rover, with its all-electric I-PACEs outfitted with the Waymo Driver in the US and Tokyo.
The company said data shows its autonomous vehicles are “making roads safer where we operate”, with its technology involved in five times fewer injury-causing collisions, and twelve times fewer injury-causing collisions with pedestrians compared to humans, it claims.
Waymo co-CEO, Tekedra Mawakana, said:
“We’re thrilled to bring the reliability, safety and magic of Waymo to Londoners. Waymo is making roads safer and transportation more accessible where we operate. We’ve demonstrated how to responsibly scale fully autonomous ride-hailing, and we can’t wait to expand the benefits of our technology to the United Kingdom. “
Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander said:
“I’m delighted that Waymo intends to bring their services to London next year, under our proposed piloting scheme. Boosting the AV sector will increase accessible transport options alongside bringing jobs, investment, and opportunities to the UK. Cutting edge investment like this will help us deliver our mission to be world-leaders in new technology and spearhead national renewal that delivers real change in our communities.”
Robin Spinks, Head of Inclusive Design at the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), said:
“The planned introduction of Waymo in the UK represents the potential for the dawn of a new era in independent mobility options for blind and partially sighted people.
“As someone who’s been severely sight impaired since birth, I’ve long hoped for the day when technology can safely enable spontaneous autonomous travel. Autonomous vehicles systems should be accessible to everyone and we’re working with the community and our industry partners to ensure that the rollout of this technology prioritises the safety and diverse needs of riders and pedestrians.”
James Gibson, Executive Director of Road Safety GB, said:
“Autonomous vehicles, such as Waymo, hold the potential to significantly improve road safety because, quite simply, the human driver is removed.
“The data shows that the Waymo vehicles have performed far safer compared to human drivers across more than 100 million autonomous miles. Rolling out autonomous vehicles in a progressive yet measured way will be the best approach. The road safety profession and wider society should embrace it. It could lead to a future that our vision zero aspirations envision.”
