California agency approves San Francisco robotaxi expansion, a win for Cruise, Waymo
By Greg Bensinger
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Alphabet Inc’s Waymo and General Motors’ Cruise can operate paid robotaxi services using unmanned self-driving vehicles throughout San Francisco, California state regulators voted on Thursday, in the face of vigorous pushback from city transportation, safety agencies and many residents.
The vote by the California Public Utilities Commission – 3 to 1 in favor – takes effect immediately, meaning the companies now have permission to begin citywide paid taxi service throughout the city and at all hours of the day.
Cruise and Waymo have been running experimental services limited by times and geographic areas. Neither company indicated on Thursday how soon they may move to make round-the-clock taxi service a reality.
The move is a critical step forward in regulating the robot cars, which Waymo, Cruise and others have been systematically rolling out in cities and states around the nation.
The approval “marks the true beginning of our commercial operations in San Francisco,” said Tekedra Mawakana, Waymo co-CEO, in a prepared statement.
The vote puts «Cruise in a position to compete with traditional ridehail, and challenge an unsafe, inaccessible transportation status quo,» said Prashanthi Raman, Cruise vice president of global government affairs, in an emailed statement.
San Francisco is important as both a symbolic hub of tech and, with over 500 autonomous vehicles already in operation, the largest test lab for the experimental cars. The companies have said real-world testing in dense city environments is essential to perfecting the technology.
San Francisco’s fire department, planning commission, transit agencies and others had lobbied the commission, charged with regulating
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