“Hello, Tripp,” a disembodied woman’s voice greeted from the speakers of a driverless taxi as it approached the Painted Ladies, the iconic colorful Victorian houses in San Francisco. “This experience might seem futuristic,” the voice continued. “Please refrain from touching the steering wheel or pedals during the ride. If you have any questions, you can find information in the Waymo app, such as our car safety and cleanliness measures.”
For years, San Francisco has served as a testing ground for driverless cars operated by Waymo, an autonomous vehicle company owned by Alphabet (Google’s parent company), and General Motors-owned Cruise. The New York Times sent three reporters to test Waymo’s robot taxis across the city. I began my journey in Alamo Square, where the famous Painted Ladies reside. Yiwen Lu embarked from Marina Green, located along San Francisco’s northern waterfront, and Mike Isaac started near the historic Mission Dolores Basilica. Together, our destination was the Beach Chalet restaurant, where Golden Gate Park meets the Pacific Ocean. Since Waymo only offers limited rides in downtown San Francisco, we attempted to replicate the experience a tourist might have while exploring the city in a driverless taxi.
The approximately five-mile trips were like a blend of “Driving Miss Daisy” and NASCAR. Two of the rides skillfully avoided traffic, while one seemingly embraced it. These robot taxi rides commenced amidst growing tensions surrounding driverless cars in San Francisco. City officials and activists are urging state officials to reconsider or slow down Waymo and Cruise’s plan to charge passengers for rides throughout the city, 24/7. Recently, a Cruise driverless car collided with a fire truck responding to an emergency, while another vehicle got stuck in wet concrete. The previous week, several Cruise cars blocked traffic in North Beach. As a response to these incidents, state regulators requested Cruise to reduce the number of vehicles it operates by half.
Waymo, on the other hand, has dealt with fewer headline-catching troubles. In May, one of its cars unfortunately struck and killed a small dog. A few years ago, a driverless Waymo car with a human safety driver at the wheel hit a pedestrian who required hospitalization. Waymo has been operating and collecting fares in the Phoenix area for a few years now, with a fleet cruising over 200 miles in that region, including transportation to and from the airport.
Waymo’s app, Waymo One, closely resembles Uber’s functionality. Riders can input their destination and receive an estimated waiting time for a ride. Once the request is confirmed, Waymo dispatches one of its 250 white Jaguar vehicles that roam the city. These cars, equipped with advanced sensors and cameras, are quite expensive, valued at up to $200,000 each. Each of us had to wait between five to ten minutes for our respective rides.
For a first-time user, the Waymo experience can be a little confusing. When the car pulled up beside the Painted Ladies, I instinctively reached for the door handle, only to find that they were flush against the door and wouldn’t open. I then realized I needed to tap the “unlock” button on the app, and as I did so, the handles shot out from the door, allowing me to enter the vehicle.
My ride was incredibly smooth, and as time went on, the novelty of the driverless experience began to wear off, turning it into just another trip across town. The car operated with precision and deliberation, but lacked the human driver’s flexibility and interaction. It consistently yielded to pedestrians and emergency vehicles.
Yiwen’s ride, like mine, was peaceful. The car followed the rules diligently, never exceeding the speed limit and always signaling well in advance. It prioritized pedestrian safety, even when other drivers might not.
In contrast, Mike’s robot taxi revealed a more aggressive side. It accelerated quickly, surprising him. The car skillfully navigated through tightly packed neighborhoods before settling into the drive towards the beach.
On my Waymo ride, as we approached a construction site blocking the right lane, the car reduced its speed from 30 mph to 20 mph and activated its turn signal to switch to the left lane. Moments later, we encountered a stop sign with a fire engine approaching, lights flashing. The Waymo hesitated momentarily as a touch screen displayed the message “Yielding to emergency vehicle.” It waited until the fire truck had passed before proceeding through the intersection. The steering wheel turned and adjusted itself on its own, and out of curiosity, I attempted to touch it while the Waymo merged into another lane. The car ignored my touch and carried on.
Yiwen’s ride encountered an initial complication—a unrelated accident near a parking lot at Marina Green. Police cars blocked part of the road, prompting the Waymo car to quickly change its route, opting for a nearby residential street instead. The car promptly adjusted to the situation.
All the cars impressively responded to pedestrians. During my ride, the Waymo patiently waited at intersections and crosswalks while people walked their dogs, enjoyed their coffee, or rode their bikes towards Golden Gate Park.
However, at the top of a hill, Mike’s car exhibited a slight flaw. While it recognized a man crossing the road in a crosswalk, it continued moving forward slowly, seemingly waiting for him to reach the other side. The pedestrian gave the car—and Mike—an annoyed look.
The robot taxis offered more features than traditional taxi cabs or ride-hailing services like Uber. The back seats were equipped with touchscreens that allowed passengers to control music. Users could select from a variety of playlists, ranging from jazz to rock and hip-hop. Mike tried to find a specific punk band’s music on the Waymo app called Armed. To do so, he had to download the Google Assistant app and verbally request the song through his phone’s microphone. His initial attempt brought up the wrong band, and the second attempt resulted in a live version of the requested song.
Instead of taking the most direct route through a congested street, my Waymo car opted to cross Golden Gate Park and proceed along a less crowded road, which added a few extra minutes to the journey. The car maintained a speed of 29 mph for the majority of the trip—a single mile below the speed limit—and yielded to other drivers. At one point, it waited for a few minutes behind a car turning left rather than merging into the right lane to overtake it.
Finally, my Waymo reached the destination parking lot six minutes later than initially predicted. Quietly, it glided to a small empty space marked by a circle on the map displayed on the touch screen. It came to a halt and announced, “You have arrived. Please make sure it’s clear before exiting.” As I stepped out of the car, the meditative electronic music that greeted me at the beginning of the ride filled the air. Soon after, Mike arrived at the same spot.
Yiwen’s trip took a more indirect route. The car informed her at the start that she would need to walk for about two minutes from her drop-off point to reach the restaurant. As she got out of the car, it reminded her once more and encouraged her to use the app as a guide for the short walk to the Beach Chalet.
The Waymo rides were reasonably priced, ranging from $18 to $21, similar to the cost of an Uber ride. It will likely take Waymo years or even decades to recoup the billions of dollars it invested in its service. Each ride is supported by Waymo staff at a nearby site, ready to assist if the car faces any issues.
However, for the passengers, it’s easy to forget that there isn’t a human driver behind the wheel of these robot taxis. The only reminder comes when you start to express gratitude to the driver, only to be reminded by the empty front seat that you’re alone in the vehicle.
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