Waymo wins approval for drastic expansion in Los Angeles, Bay Area regions
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Set us as preferred Waymo’s robotaxis will soon roam a much larger portion of California as the company received approval to expand across 18 counties.The California Public Utilities Commission gave Waymo permission to operate in San Diego and Sacramento, as well as in communities in Marin, Napa, Orange and Riverside counties, among others.
The approval will allow the Alphabet-owned company to more than triple its service area in the regions surrounding Los Angeles and San Francisco.Business Waymo unveils the Ojai, its new self-driving taxi that has more leg room and is better equipped for snowy roads.
The rollout begins in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Phoenix.“While Waymo is receiving its permits today, expansion will be gradual and guided by its safety framework,” said Waymo spokesperson Sandy Karp.“Waymo’s immediate focus is preparing to launch rider-only service in San Diego later this summer and continuing to validate its technology in Sacramento.”On Friday, Waymo, based in Mountain View, announced the CPUC approved a letter from the company first filed in January.
The new service area will eventually stretch from Santa Clarita and Thousand Oaks down to San Diego in Southern California, and from Sacramento to San Jose in Northern California.The expansion follows Waymo’s launch of its new vehicle dubbed the Ojai, which is larger and cheaper to produce than the retrofitted Jaguar I-Paces that the company previously relied on.
Business The breakdown of Uber Technologies Inc.’s robotaxi partnership with Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo is looming large over the ride-hailing giant’s quarterly results, as investors grow anxious about the stock that has lagged behind the broader market this year.Waymo is well ahead in the robotaxi race, operating in more than 10 major cities while Elon Musk’s Tesla is still fac...