European startups navigate long, winding road to self-driving future

A passenger vehicle is seen traveling autonomously using Oxbotica software during a trial on public roads in Oxford, Britain, June 27, 2019. Picture taken June 27, 2019. REUTERS/Toby Melville

OXFORD, England: Far from the sunny, wide streets of Phoenix, where Waymo's self-driving taxis ply their trade, a handful of European startups are developing driverless cars to navigate the clogged, chaotic, rain-swept roads of European cities.

Startups such as Oxbotica, FiveAI and Wayve that are testing cars in Britain say the old continent is a unique proposition with quirks and challenges that tech giant Alphabet's Waymo, Uber, Aurora and others have yet to crack.