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Waymo receive approval Friday afternoon from the California Public Utilities Commission to lock a commercial-grade robotaxi inspection and repair in Los Angeles , the San Francisco Peninsula and on San Francisco freeways .
Theapprovalremoves the last roadblock for the Alphabet company to charge for rides in these expanded area . significantly , it opens up Modern territory for Waymo in one of the country ’s largest metropolis and unlock a route to San Francisco International Airport , which is turn up to the south of the urban center .
Waymo has operate on a commercial-grade service 24 hours a day , seven daytime a week throughout the city of San Francisco since pick up approval from the commission in August . Waymo is also permit to give people free driverless ride in part of Los Angeles . But until today ’s commendation , it was not capable to send for ride in Los Angeles .
Waymo , which kicked off a community tour of Los Angeles in October , was wrapping up its final neighbourhood stop as it awaited net approval .
The CPUC decision comes just a daytime after Waymo co - CEO Tekedra Mawakana hash out the time to come of the companionship and the all-encompassing self-reliant fomite industryonstage at StrictlyVC LA . She said that Waymo robotaxis had experience a “ warm welcome ” in the metropolis with more than 15,000 people using the service . Mawakana articulate that trip data point record customers were using the service for everyday errand — grounds that she said suggested the service would do well commercially in Los Angeles .
“ It ’s exciting to see that like 2,000 of those trip-up are people going to very , very basic errands , right , which is that ’s going to pass an errand in a Waymo is like using it for your life , ” Mawakana said . “ likewise , citizenry are taking it to restaurants , bar at the same issue , like 2,000 trips . And then 300 of the head trip are people going to school day , college as well as K through 12 . So we like that signaling that people are n’t just giving us a strong welcome , but they are really integrating into their sprightliness . ”
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She say 50,000 people have join the waitlist to expend the service in Los Angeles .
Mawakana suggested Thursday evening that Waymo would n’t immediately start charging for ride in Los Angeles if it received favourable reception ( which of course materialize a day later ) .
“ We will , as we did in San Francisco , expand our service before we start consign , ” she said . “ And I mean , we sort of show up and you get to experience this for a couple of calendar month or several months without paying . And then we have that moment of truth , which we choke through in San Francisco , which is we start charge , and then we figure out how many multitude [ have ] really mix it into their lives . What ’s the terms pointedness they ’re uncoerced to pay ? ”
you could see the full audience below .
