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Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

reuters.com

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Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#111

Post by xnx »

jedberg wrote: post #85
simonw wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I honestly don't understand the appeal of a private self-driving vehicle as opposed to a taxi-style rental service. I like that Waymo has human backup! Knowing that if the car gets into a tricky situation there's someone who can remote control it back out again is very reassuring. I also like not having to think about where it parks, what it's doing when I'm not in it etc.

I would love to have one! Imagine all the benefits you just listed, but it's just mine so I can keep my stuff in it. Maybe my car seat or my work equipment or my shopping bags. I get where I'm going and I send it over the the parking garage a mile away that's cheap, and then summon it back when I'm done with my event, so I never have to circle for parking. If enough people to it, they would probably develop a protoco…

> but it's just mine so I can keep my stuff in it

In the distant future (10 years?) we may have private trailers/pods that are moved by self-driving vehicles. Best of both options.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#112

Post by guiambros »

pesus wrote: post #70
strifey wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Anecdotally, they've gotten much more proactive at taking unprotected lefts in my experience.

They seem to be getting more proactive in general. I was surprised last night when the one I was in went full barrel through a light that was already yellow and turned red while we were still in the intersection.

Ha, I had the exact same experience on a Waymo last night.

The light had just turned yellow before we entered the intersection, and I was sure it would slam the brakes (there was no one behind, so no risk of being read-ended). Yet it accelerated and cleared the intersection as the light turned red. It was what any reasonably good driver would do, but certainly edgy for a 100% law-abiding robot.

Pretty flawless experience.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#113

Post by xnx »

rangestransform wrote: post #68
kouru225 wrote: post #59

You bring that crap to nyc and we’re making a special new waymo congestion price

I can’t wait until this hits NYC and the subway is forced to compete on all 3 of price, comfort, convenience

Pull up the MTA tracks and let Waymo better use the right of way.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#114

Post by kalleboo »

ggreer wrote: post #16
wolfram74 wrote: post #7

I wonder if the waymo solution is very vehicle specific or if it could be easily applied to say, a 10~12 person van that could accommodate a wheelchair? It would be interesting to design a transit system around 4~5 times as many vehicles with higher interval or more responsive pathing with something like pick up kiosks.

Self-driving makes the most economic sense when fewer people are in a vehicle. With a large van or bus, the cost of the human driver is split between more passengers. Also van or bus service is less compelling to individuals, as it makes them beholden to bus stop locations and schedules instead of picking them up and dropping them off when and where they want. Adding support for wheelchairs introduces new failure mod…

I'm seeing a lot of talk of there being a shortage of bus drivers in many places, so self-driving could probably still help increase service

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#115

Post by rangestransform »

kouru225 wrote: post #109
ugh123 wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you prefer human taxi drivers?

I prefer streets that don’t have traffic so pedestrians can walk freely, and watching these waymo cars trap themselves and cause 30 minute long traffic jams because their code accidentally put them in a holding pattern is a genuine nightmare

If we want to exaggerate issues with each mode of transport, I prefer getting to my destination without getting stabbed, pushed onto the tracks, getting my nostrils assaulted by the smell of bodily fluids, having my ears assaulted by the train in the tunnels (14th/union sq 456 especially), having my ears assaulted by a showtimer, or waiting 20 mins for a train at 3am

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#116

Post by JumpCrisscross »

proudestmonkey wrote: post #38
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> they will push back because “NIMBYism” runs deep Waymo is being adopted in wealthy areas first. To the extent there is NIMBY sentiment, it's towards rideshare drivers. (Also, billionaires probably wouldn't be taking Waymo. If their properties aren't fly in they're driving themselves.)

In SF, a lot of billionaires love taking Waymos

Yes, we agree. I meant in Jackson our billionaires either love driving, in which case they drive themselves, or don’t, in which case they fly straight in. The middle ground between those isn’t enough to found a market on.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#117

Post by dageshi »

danvoell wrote: post #80
dageshi wrote: post #20

I'm convinced that Waymo will quietly continue to roll out self driving taxi's to ever increasing areas in "beta" until one day they're covering a significant percentage of the most profitable areas to be a taxi in. Instead of trying for universal self driving, they're going to prioritise being self driving taxi's for the most profitable areas.

I feel like some people have been using "most profitable areas" instead of saying dense urban areas and upset that it might take a while to reach rural and suburban areas. Is that what you are saying? What business is not in the business of pursuing the most plausible profitable direction first?

I think the general public has believed that self driving would arrive as some big bang moment where it just "worked" in 95%+ of environments where people drive. One morning there'd be an announcement it was cracked and then in six months you'd be able to buy a new car with it.

I don't think from either a business, technical or legal perspective google ever wants to sell or license their tech directly to a car being sold to the public.

They want to run a taxi service, they plan on running a taxi service, they're never going to sell it directly to consumers but they don't want consumers thinking about the implications of that.

They're just going to keep expanding Waymo in the background till it's ubiquitous.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#118

Post by dageshi »

jedberg wrote: post #85
simonw wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I honestly don't understand the appeal of a private self-driving vehicle as opposed to a taxi-style rental service. I like that Waymo has human backup! Knowing that if the car gets into a tricky situation there's someone who can remote control it back out again is very reassuring. I also like not having to think about where it parks, what it's doing when I'm not in it etc.

I would love to have one! Imagine all the benefits you just listed, but it's just mine so I can keep my stuff in it. Maybe my car seat or my work equipment or my shopping bags. I get where I'm going and I send it over the the parking garage a mile away that's cheap, and then summon it back when I'm done with my event, so I never have to circle for parking. If enough people to it, they would probably develop a protoco…

I've been thinking about this.

In self driving world it no longer makes sense for a car to look like they do now.

Instead I think they operate a bit like Coach and Horses used to. You the consumer own the "coach", you have it specced out how you want it, your choice of seating (hell even a bed?), your sound system, your big screen tv, whatever you want because you're a passenger not the driver.

The "horses" are the self driving bit + batteries. The ubiquitous taxi service owns these. Maybe you permanently rent a low range model (100 miles) that is attached to your "Coach" at all times for quick errands. For longer range journeys you hire a model with more battery and longer range that drives over and attaches automatically to your coach.

For really long range journeys, your self driving "horse" drives into a coaching station along the way, detaches and another one attaches in 30 seconds and off you go.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#119

Post by jillesvangurp »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #58
jillesvangurp wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unless those companies stumble on competing solutions that they can use to level the playing field. Waymo doesn't have this market to itself in perpetuity. Uber and Lyft basically have lots of revenue and can afford to take some bets on experimenting with different partners for self driving at a relatively low risk. There are plenty of other companies experimenting with self driving taxis, cars, trucks, etc. And not…

> Uber and Lyft basically have lots of revenue Waymo is level with Lyft in San Francisco [1]. > plenty of other companies experimenting with self driving taxis, cars, trucks, etc. None with a track record. The only wild card is Tesla. [1] https://www.ktvu.com/news/waymo-ridership-skyrocketed-in-sf-...

Chinese autonomous deployments are pretty substantial at this point. And compared to places like Beijing, San Francisco is a bit of a small & rural village. China is rolling out at a faster pace than Waymo. More vehicles, more cities, more companies, larger cities, etc.

Re: Waymo to test its autonomous driving technology in over 10 new cities

#120

Post by djhn »

dageshi wrote: post #118
jedberg wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would love to have one! Imagine all the benefits you just listed, but it's just mine so I can keep my stuff in it. Maybe my car seat or my work equipment or my shopping bags. I get where I'm going and I send it over the the parking garage a mile away that's cheap, and then summon it back when I'm done with my event, so I never have to circle for parking. If enough people to it, they would probably develop a protoco…

I've been thinking about this. In self driving world it no longer makes sense for a car to look like they do now. Instead I think they operate a bit like Coach and Horses used to. You the consumer own the "coach", you have it specced out how you want it, your choice of seating (hell even a bed?), your sound system, your big screen tv, whatever you want because you're a passenger not the driver. The "horses" are the s…

Ooh interesting vision! Are any companies pursuing this avenue?
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