Mexican Media Brands
Waymo Launches For-Pay Driverless Shuttle Service
Today Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo autonomous-vehicle unit is accepting paying customers for some of the 500 self-driving shuttles it has been testing in Phoenix, Ariz.
Share
Today Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo autonomous-vehicle unit is accepting paying customers for some of the 500 self-driving shuttles it has been testing in Phoenix, Ariz.
Dubbed Waymo One, the program will cover Phoenix and four of its suburbs with 24/7 on-demand service. The company says the vehicles to be used—modified Chrysler Pacifica minivans—will have human backup drivers on board for now.
Waymo says it will initially restrict access to the app-based service to “hundreds” of selected riders who have been testing the service in Phoenix over the past eight months.
The vans can carry as many as three adults and one child per trip. Waymo hasn’t explained pricing for the service, but it says customers will be presented with estimates before they agree to take a trip.
Waymo has been testing pricing models there since October. The company began offering select Phoenix consumers free rides in truly driverless vans in March. The for-pay program launching today will help Waymo collect data about the operational aspects of commercial service, according to the company.
RELATED CONTENT
-
On Automotive: An All Electric Edition
A look at electric vehicle-related developments, from new products to recycling old batteries.
-
Multiple Choices for Light, High-Performance Chassis
How carbon fiber is utilized is as different as the vehicles on which it is used. From full carbon tubs to partial panels to welded steel tube sandwich structures, the only limitation is imagination.
-
Ford Copies Nature
As Nature (yes, capital N Nature) has done a pretty good job of designing things, it is somewhat surprising that Man (ditto) doesn’t follow Nature’s lead more often when it comes to designing objects.
