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Waymo for Business

waymo.com

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Re: Waymo for Business

#31

Aw man, when I saw this I thought "oh, finally, trucking!" But no, it's just bulk taxi ride purchasing.

Trucking is probably going to be one of the things that's harder to automate, and given the way things are going we best hope they don't given the absolute bloodbath it would create for labor (trucking is one of the most common professions in the US). I would wager that would lead to unrest in a way we've not seen in a long time.

Re: Waymo for Business

#32
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Especially when I'm guessing a lot of these "urban tech worker" commutes are mostly on surface streets or congested highways barely moving any faster. In my experience cycling to work I am actually faster on the bike than when I take the car. This is mostly due to filtering to the front of the intersection effectively eliminating any and all effects of rush hour traffic. Another huge factor is I can also park the bik…

I would be 90% sweat if I biked to work. Would need a shower and change

While I agree that it’s kinda unpleasant to get all sweaty before work, many larger corporations have offices (usually with gyms) have locker rooms and showers to support bikers. While I’m able to take transit, many of my coworkers do bike+shower at the office for commuting.

Re: Waymo for Business

#35
post #31

Aw man, when I saw this I thought "oh, finally, trucking!" But no, it's just bulk taxi ride purchasing.

Trucking is probably going to be one of the things that's harder to automate, and given the way things are going we best hope they don't given the absolute bloodbath it would create for labor (trucking is one of the most common professions in the US). I would wager that would lead to unrest in a way we've not seen in a long time.

We have self driving trucks in the United States today. They operate on public roads, today. (Eg by Aurora)

Most people assumed that self driving trucks are easier to automate since they just do highway driving with limited turns.

Re: Waymo for Business

#37

“Meet Sustainability Goals: Waymo’s fully electric fleet helps organizations advance their sustainability targets” Taking a private taxi to commute to work or school is easily the worst thing you can do environmentally in a city. Doesn’t really matter that you’re not burning dinosaur juice.

Driving your own petrol car is surely worse? What are you talking about...

Re: Waymo for Business

#38
post #25

“Meet Sustainability Goals: Waymo’s fully electric fleet helps organizations advance their sustainability targets” Taking a private taxi to commute to work or school is easily the worst thing you can do environmentally in a city. Doesn’t really matter that you’re not burning dinosaur juice.

That doesn't seem right. Taking your own car, which you park at both ends of the trip, is clearly worse from a vehicle utilization and land use standpoint. A Waymo that takes a dozen trips a day and never parks on the street seems obviously superior.

I think the point is it's green washing. True sustainability is public transit, or biking or walking. This is just a line item got a company to blast as sustainability in marketing. This will let Waymo absorb some money from green washing slush funds.

Re: Waymo for Business

#39

Just read the blog post but I’m not clear on what's actually being launched here. As an org, why would I 'subscribe' today, what do I concretely get (coverage, pricing, SLAs, etc.) vs. just signing up for a future interest list?

You can bulk purchase daily transportation for your employees, so they can work on their commute too. How exciting.

I never heard of companies doing this. The most I've heard of is some sort of shuttle bus service, and even then there's no real expectation that you'll work on the ride there. Taxi-style transport is only for exceptional circumstances (eg. you worked late), or you're on some sort of business trip.
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