Waymo has announced its intentions to operate a fully autonomous ride-hailing service – with no human behind the wheel – in London from next year.
The American autonomous driving technology company says the move is designed to support the capital’s extensive network of bus, tube, bike, and pedestrian infrastructure
Over the coming months, it will lay the groundwork for the service in collaboration with its fleet operations partner Moove, and continue to engage with local and national leaders to secure the necessary permissions.
In the US, the Waymo Driver has already driven over one hundred million fully autonomous miles on public roads and provided more than ten million paid rides.
Tekedra Mawakana, Waymo co-CEO, 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.”
Waymo has strong ties to the UK. London and Oxford are home to its first international engineering hubs, which include teams advancing large-scale, closed-loop simulation – a ‘gold standard’ development method for fully autonomous driving technology.
It is also partnered with Jaguar Land Rover, the British brand whose all-electric I-PACEs – outfitted with the Waymo Driver – are serving hundreds of thousands of fully autonomous rides every week in the US, and are currently driving in Tokyo.
The move has been welcomed by the UK Government.
Heidi Alexander, secretary of state for transport, 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.”
Waymo says its arrival can help achieve London’s transport priorities, including ambitious targets for reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on the city’s roads.
The data shows Waymo is making roads safer where it operates, with its technology involved in five times fewer injury-causing collisions, and twelve times fewer injury-causing collisions with pedestrians compared to humans.
Waymo says it is looking forward to offering an additional option that helps Londoners move safely through their city – whether they bike, walk, or hail a Waymo ride – and provides greater independence to those currently underserved by the mobility status quo.
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.”
The move is also supported by Road Safety GB.
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.”
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