New Delhi [India], May 20 : Self-driving unit of Alphabet Inc. (parent company of Google), Waymo has received approval from California regulators to expand its robotaxi operations across more areas of the San Francisco Peninsula and further south, including San Jose, according to a news report by Reuters.
But despite the approval, Waymo noted it does not plan to immediately broaden its services in the San Francisco Bay Area.
"We want to bring Waymo One to more of the Bay Area, and any expansion of the service will happen methodically over time," a company spokesperson said, quoted by Reuters.
The report added that the spokesperson did not provide any reason for not immediately giving services in the Bay area but said there were "no imminent plans or timeline to share."
Waymo is the only US company currently operating uncrewed robotaxi services for paying passengers.
The company has a fleet of over 1,500 vehicles active in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin, Texas, providing more than 250,000 rides each week.
Meanwhile, Reuters reports that the green light from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to Waymo comes as Tesla prepares to launch a paid robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, next month.
Elon Musk, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tesla, has also stated plans to bring the service to California later this year.
Waymo had submitted its expansion request in March, receiving 23 responses in support and no formal opposition, the CPUC said in a statement.
Quoting the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Reuters report further added that the company has been steadily expanding its footprint; at the same time, it is also recalling over 1,200 self-driving vehicles to install a software update aimed at reducing the risk of collisions with chains, gates, and other road barriers. The agency had opened an investigation into the issue last year.
Meanwhile, NHTSA has also been probing Tesla's Full Self-Driving system since October due to collisions in low-visibility conditions.
Last week, the agency requested information from Tesla regarding its upcoming robotaxi service to evaluate how the vehicles would perform in adverse weather conditions, the report added.
Self-driving car companies have faced increased regulatory attention following a serious 2023 accident in San Francisco involving a General Motors Cruise robotaxi, which subsequently led to the suspension of Cruise's operations.
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