Waymo Hits the Highway

Waymo is hitting the highway. The company said starting Wednesday its robotaxis—already a common sight on some city streets—are expanding their routes to freeways and interstates around San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix. And in the Bay Area, riders can now get dropped off or picked up curbside in driverless cars at San Jose Mineta International Airport. Other regions will get highway service soon, Waymo said. What's to know, per the AP:

• Expanded service: The highway rollout will be gradual in LA, where Waymo cars are increasingly common downtown and in many residential neighborhoods. But around San Francisco, the expansion encompasses the entire peninsula to the south of the city, including Silicon Valley. Passengers can now hail an autonomous sedan near San Francisco City Hall and take it 45 miles on US 101 to San Jose's airport. Waymo unleashed its robotaxis in Phoenix in 2020, and has extended its service to highways around that city. The company plans to expand to Atlanta and Austin, Texas.
• Little competition so far: Amazon announced in June that it plans to make as many as 10,000 robotaxis annually as it prepares to challenge Waymo. Tesla has said it aims to launch a "Cybercab" service by 2026, but Elon Musk has made unfulfilled promises about self-driving cars for nearly a decade. General Motors late last year retreated from the robotaxi business and stopped funding its money-losing Cruise autonomous vehicle unit.

• But meet Dot: Residents of San Francisco, Los Angeles, and other cities who order on DoorDash might have it delivered by a robot dubbed Dot. Soon Phoenix will also get Dot deliveries. The robot can reach speeds of up to 20mph and travel on streets and sidewalks. Dot is bright red, resembles a big baby stroller and is large enough to handle up to six large pizza boxes or 30 pounds of cargo. DoorDash has also been testing drone delivery for several years in Australia, Texas, and North Carolina.
• Safety: A new California law that kicks in next year will help authorities hold driverless car companies responsible for traffic violations. The law comes after police in San Bruno tried to ticket a self-driving vehicle for an illegal U-turn earlier this year. The police said in a now-viral social media post that officers stopped the vehicle, but declined to write a ticket as their "citation books don't have a box for 'robot.'"