Austin, TX (August 3, 2023) – Waymo has officially announced that Austin will be the fourth city to have access to their autonomous ride-hailing service, Waymo One. After months of testing downtown in their all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles, Waymo will begin initial operations this fall, with the first fully driverless rides available to the public in the coming months.
The Waymo Driver will be able to traverse much of the city, including popular areas like downtown, Barton Hills, Riverside, East Austin, and Hyde Park. “Austin is one of the most dynamic cities in the country, and we’ve found the Waymo Driver is adapting incredibly quickly,” said Saswat Panigrahi, Chief Product Officer at Waymo.
This launch represents a milestone for Waymo, nearly 10 years after the first fully autonomous ride on public streets occurred in Austin in 2015.
The addition of driverless vehicles aims to improve road safety in Austin, where 125 people died in crashes last year, 51 of them pedestrians or cyclists. The Waymo Driver can avoid common causes of accidents like speeding, intoxication, and distraction by following rules of the road and remaining attentive at all times. Measures have also been taken to reduce “dooring” incidents with cyclists.
Expanding accessibility is a key goal, providing independent travel options to people who cannot drive themselves. “One of the greatest barriers for blind individuals is reliance on others for transportation, for work, leisure or family,” said Emily Coleman of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. “Autonomous vehicles empower them to seek out the lives they want without obligation to trust strangers.”
The all-electric Waymo One fleet will also help connect Austinites to their communities sustainably while contributing to the city’s 2040 net zero emissions target. Excited riders can join the waitlist at waymo.com/waitlist to experience the service firsthand when it becomes available this fall.
