Alphabet’s autonomous ride-hailing company Waymo has officially launched its Waymo One services for the public in San Francisco, California.
Waymo One is now available to anyone with the app
Waymo proudly announced in a blog post on Tuesday that its Waymo One is now available to all people in San Francisco.
This significant development ultimately eliminates the need for users to register on a waitlist to access the driverless taxi service.
Customers interested in riding on Waymo One’s I-Pace self-driving cars can now simply download the app to get the service.
“We’ve been operating in San Francisco for years now, deliberately scaling our service over time. With tens of thousands of weekly trips, our Waymo One service provides safe, sustainable, and reliable transportation to locals and visitors to the city alike.
Now it’s available to anyone.”
Waymo
What’s special about Waymo One services?
According to Waymo, approximately 30% of rides in San Franciso are to local companies such as restaurants, live music venues, bars, coffee shops, ice cream parlors, parks, and museums, among others.
Meanwhile, about 36% of riders seek Waymo One services to connect to public transit platforms like BART or Muni.
“I’m thankful to be living in a city that embraces technology when it can improve our lives with convenient and safe modes of transit.”
Michelle Cusano, Executive Director at The Richmond Neighborhood Center
Waymo also emphasized that its current fleet consists of all-electric vehicles and sources 100% renewable energy from San Francisco’s CleanPowerSF program.
Waymo’s commitment to sustainability
Waymo proudly shared that its rides have substantially contributed to cutting carbon emissions by about 570,000 kg since the launch of its commercial operations in August last year, aligning with California’s wider ride-hail emissions targets.
In addition, the service also apparently pushes Waymo riders to “travel more sustainably.”
According to the company’s recent rider survey, 53% of its San Francisco customers deem that Waymo has influenced them to be more considerate of the environment.
Moreover, over 50% of Waymo’s SF riders claim that the service has boosted their sense of personal safety when traveling.
“I enjoy riding in Waymo cars and appreciate the ease of transportation. Members of our community, especially transgender and gender non-conforming folks, don’t have to worry about being verbally assaulted or discriminated against when riding with Waymo.”
Charles Renfroe, Development Manager at Openhouse SF
So far, Waymo has accumulated almost 300,000 registrations from people seeking to ride its autonomous-driving cars, including those living and visiting San Francisco. Finally, the wait is over, as the company has opened the Waymo One service to anyone.
