After the initial testing and limited availability in California's most populous state, Waymo One is now available in Los Angeles for its residents and visitors to use the autonomous ride-hailing service. Initially, Waymo launched its tests in the City of Angels last year, allowing the company to map its streets better and learn more about its traffic. This was later followed by a limited launch in the area.
Now, like its neighboring city, San Francisco, it is getting full access to Waymo One's services, allowing users to book rides on its self-driving robotaxis and enjoy the driverless experience offered.
Waymo One Is Now Available in Los Angeles
The latest press release from Waymo officially announced its availability in Los Angeles for all customers in the city to book and experience the autonomous ride-hailing service in the area. The company is launching its Waymo One service for full public availability in the city, after its previous testing phase and limited availability which only allowed users to book rides following its initial waitlist.
Waymo One saw as many as 300,000 people joining the waitlist to experience the self-driving service, so Alphabet has now launched the service for everyone to access starting today.
Waymo One is available to service as much as 80 square miles of L.A. County, currently available through Hollywood Boulevard, Santa Monica, the University of Southern California (USC), "and everything in between," according to the company.
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24/7 Waymo One Is Offered to All in LA
Waymo One's launch in Los Angeles brings forth its 24/7 service to the city, with users who are registered on the app now capable of booking a ride any time on the day or night, all week long.
While this service from Waymo One is concentrated mostly in L.A. County, the company promised to expand its availability in the future by scaling it like it did over at Metro Phoenix and the Bay Area.
Waymo One's Expanding Operations
Alphabet has big plans for Waymo and it is not centering on one city alone, with the company looking to expand its robotaxi service in the entirety of the country in the future. The company recently faced a setback after receiving numerous links to accidents, crashes and issues, but it recently resumed its services in its first city of operations, San Francisco, after being temporarily suspended.
The company has since expanded from its Bay Area operations, which has been live for several years now, adding cities like Phoenix, AZ; Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; and more cities where it is currently under testing. Alphabet has also previously tested its service in Los Angeles after it received the state's approval to launch it in the largest Californian city, and it is also eyeing the largest city on the East Coast, New York City.
There have been significant setbacks in Waymo's operations, but the company has pushed forward with its developments and improvements to help make it widely available for users, being among the first to popularize robotaxis. In this latest development, Waymo One is now available for all users in LA County, but the service is soon expanding in more areas.
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