[bots]

Waymo, the US driverless car firm, said it hopes to be operating a robotaxi service in London as soon as September this year.

The UK government has said it plans to change regulations in the second half of 2026 to enable driverless taxis to operate in the city but has not given a specific date.

Waymo said a pilot service will launch in April and Local Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood said: "We're supporting Waymo and other operators through our passenger pilots, and pro-innovation regulations to make self-driving cars a reality on British roads."

The firm, which is owned by Google-parent Alphabet, showed off a fleet of cars it brought to the UK at London's Transport Museum on Wednesday.

Waymo's vehicles are currently being operated by a safety driver, mapping the streets.

But when the service launches to paying passengers, there will be no human at the wheel.

Greenwood, who attended the Waymo event, said she expected driverless vehicles to make city roads safer.

"We know that unlike human drivers, automated vehicles don't get tired, don't get distracted and don't drive under the influence," she said.

But she added that autonomous vehicles also had to meet strict safety standards, "including protection from hacking and cyber threats" before they would be allowed on UK roads.

The government has estimated that the autonomous vehicle industry could add £42bn to the UK economy by 2035 and create nearly 40,000 new jobs.

Passengers will be able to hail Waymo robotaxis via an app once the rules permit.

They will not initially include airport drop-offs.

The Waymo vehicle uses four sensor systems to gather data from the world around it: lidar, vision, radar and microphone.

It claims these sensors enable its vehicles to be aware of its surroundings 360 degrees, as far as three football fields ahead and during bad weather.

A powerful computer in the boot processes that data and determines the car's actions and reactions in real time.

A Waymo spokesperson said pricing would be "competitive" but "premium" and would rise during periods of high demand.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czej9n578k9o

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Will the car provide the conversation of a london cabbie?

[Zizu]

This won’t end well …

[Zizu]

One slight concern .. how will these driverless cars negotiate the life changing potholes !!

[bots]

Originally Posted by Zizu

One slight concern .. how will these driverless cars negotiate the life changing potholes !!

in london they wont be going fast enough to notice

[Livia]

How long before the first fatality?

[arista]

I sure TV News will try them on the first day

[Strictly Jake]

What kind of dystopia stuff is this. Also why take taxi drivers jobs?

[arista]

Originally Posted by Strictly Jake

What kind of dystopia stuff is this. Also why take taxi drivers jobs?

It won't take all the jobs

There are not enough of them

[Livia]

Originally Posted by arista

It won't take all the jobs

There are not enough of them

Hmmmm.... Give it time.

[AnnieK]

I watched a Chris McCausland documentary the other week on advancements for blind people. He was in LA and went in a driverless taxi and it was the first time he had every been in a vehicle alone. It was really interested but I don't think it would be something I would be rushing to try

[bots]

if it means there will be taxis available in more remote areas i'm all for it. We will just need to wait and see

[thesheriff443]

O would imagine most women would feel safer in a driverless taxi

Having picked a young woman up years ago on a remote country lane after the taxi driver tried to assault her

[GoldHeart]

What if the driverless taxi crashes?? , how will this even work .

[Zizu]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

What if the driverless taxi crashes?? , how will this even work .

Yes !! …. So many questions like how will the drivers taxi cope with icy , ungritted roads or crazy strong winds on motorways

[bots]

Driverless cars are very, very safe. They don't get distracted like humans do.

My car has anti crash technology, it also has keep on the road tech, it also keeps a safe distance from the car in front. It's not driverless, but most of the tech has been tried and tested for over a decade already

[Crimson Dynamo]

Youtube video

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by bots

Driverless cars are very, very safe. They don't get distracted like humans do.

My car has anti crash technology, it also has keep on the road tech, it also keeps a safe distance from the car in front. It's not driverless, but most of the tech has been tried and tested for over a decade already

Digital technology fails all the time,not sure I'd feel comfortable... travelling in a ' driverless taxi ' .

[bots]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

Digital technology fails all the time,not sure I'd feel comfortable... travelling in a ' driverless taxi ' .

my point is that this is no longer new tech, it's tried and tested for over a decade. By your logic, you shouldn't drive a normal car in case the car doesn't steer or the brakes fail, after all they use digital tech

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Zizu

This won’t end well …

These companies don't care as long as they're making money.

These Cars potentially malfunctioning and harming people means nothing to these corporate types.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by thesheriff443

O would imagine most women would feel safer in a driverless taxi

Having picked a young woman up years ago on a remote country lane after the taxi driver tried to assault her

She won't feel safer if the driverless Taxi malfunctions and she ends up in a Car accident.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by bots

my point is that this is no longer new tech, it's tried and tested for over a decade. By your logic, you shouldn't drive a normal car in case the car doesn't steer or the brakes fail, after all they use digital tech

The big difference is that the person in question can potentially spot if there's something wrong with the brakes in a normal car, before potentially getting into the car.

If a driverless car malfunctions and you're in the car, it's a lot more scary.

[thesheriff443]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

She won't feel safer if the driverless Taxi malfunctions and she ends up in a Car accident.

She could have an accident with someone driving the taxi but she won’t b sexually assaulted

[Vicky.]

Originally Posted by thesheriff443

O would imagine most women would feel safer in a driverless taxi

Having picked a young woman up years ago on a remote country lane after the taxi driver tried to assault her

Good point. I used to be so skitzy getting in a taxi with some random bloke driving after nights out. Had heard too many horror stories in my life and had experienced too many men acting..not good

[joeysteele]

No thanks.
Not for me this.

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

She won't feel safer if the driverless Taxi malfunctions and she ends up in a Car accident.

Exactly