Reporter’s driverless van ride: Cool tech, freaky turns

Waymo, a unit of Google parent Alphabet Inc, is one of several companies testing driverless vehicles in the US. But it's the first offering lifts to the public with no humans at the wheel who can take over in sticky situations. — AP

CHANDLER, Arizona: The annoyed shopper paced around and knocked on the windows of a minivan blocking him from leaving his Costco parking spot. He didn’t seem to notice, or care, that there was no one inside.

A colleague and I had called for the Waymo ride – our first in a fully driverless vehicle – and quickly encountered a hiccup: figuring out how to tell it to meet us at the curb.