SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Alphabet-owned autonomous vehicle company Waymo announced on Tuesday that it will begin testing its fleet of driverless robotaxis on the Los Angeles freeway system, including Interstates 10, 110, 405, and 90.
These robotaxis will operate without a human safety operator behind the wheel. According to a report by TechCrunch, Waymo plans to follow the same phased approach it has used in other regions, starting with employee-only access to driverless vehicles on Los Angeles freeways before eventually opening the service to the public.
Waymo has maintained a presence in Los Angeles since 2019. In 2022, the company announced that Los Angeles would be one of its next commercial markets, following its operations in Phoenix and San Francisco.
In March 2024, Waymo received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission to operate a commercial robotaxi service in Los Angeles. This approval also extended to an expanded service area in the Bay Area, including the San Francisco Peninsula and major San Francisco freeways.
