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Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

sfchronicle.com

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Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#281

Post by ajb »

guiambros wrote: post #212
underyx wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Their policy from an email sent out Oct 2023: > Many of our riders choose Waymo for the clean and consistent vehicle we offer. To ensure every rider gets this experience, we’ll be applying a vehicle cleaning fee for riders who leave a mess behind in the vehicle, such as vomit, excessive trash, and smoking odors. > For those that self-report their mess during their ride (not including smoking), the fee will be $50. Fo…

Plus there's a camera in the car. Pretty easy to keep riders accountable, and solve any dispute. Compare that to other car sharing options (e.g. Zipcar, where cars are usually a mess, but there's no way to keep users accountable).

Hmm zipcars in my area (London) are usually clean.

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#282

Post by dazc »

psunavy03 wrote: post #208
sho_hn wrote: post #141

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a German, I'd like to point out that about half of the German Autobahn network do have speed limits in place, or had in 2019 (this oscillates a lot between about 30-60%, I think). According to a government study into Autobahn fatalities that occurred in 2018, "non-adapted speed" (defined as the appropriate speed for the traffic conditions and allowing full control of the vehicle) was the cause of death in 45% of c…

I'm not denying any of this. I'm just observing that there's a faction in the US which seems to say "speed is a leading factor in car deaths" (which it is) and then insists on everyone never going 1mph over our often-arbitrary-and-politically-set speed limits. When what you're describing as "non-adapted speed" is exactly the actual problem . . . driving beyond one's capabilities or the capabilities of one's vehicle.…

So let everyone decide to decide for themselves what a safe speed should be on any given stretch of road and see what happens? In other words, let evolution find the 'safe' speed.

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#284

Post by thebruce87m »

thepasswordis wrote: post #176
fhub wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can choose a soothing music play list in the car and it automatically resumes in the next ride Oh wow! There is a non zero chance that was implemented because of some feedback I provided as a trusted tester many months ago. I napped my son in them a lot when they were free and just spent my time thinking up things they should do and reporting them in app.

It’s been that way for several years.

Several years is many months

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#285

Post by bluefirebrand »

quectophoton wrote: post #117
firloop wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A rarely discussed negative to Waymo is that they drive slower than human drivers. Anecdotally they can be 10-25% slower than the rest of traffic, and it's not uncommon to see human drivers do unsafe moves to pass a Waymo.

> Anecdotally they can be 10-25% slower than the rest of traffic I don't know anything about USA, but my understanding of other humans tells me that "Waymo is 10-25% slower than the rest of traffic" actually means "Waymo drives at the legal speed limit for that location, without surpassing it".

So it's a bad driver then, because matching flow of traffic is more important and safer than stubbornly following the exact speed limit

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#286

Post by Workaccount2 »

scrollaway wrote: post #280
tomp wrote: post #268

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is approximately 0% chance that the speed limit decreed by faceless bureaucrats is the optimal speed for the current circumstances on a given road.

You're the one calling them faceless bureaucrats. Most speed limits are set in place by a mix of safety boards and urban planners, who do take these limits into account. Explain to me what makes them faceless and detached from the situation?

Because everyone drives 40mph on that main road that is marked 25mph, and there is no string of accidents or fatalities after decades of this.

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#287

Post by michaelt »

paulryanrogers wrote: post #145
gnicholas wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How nice is the backseat of a Waymo compared to an Accord?

It has been explained to me that cars are an extension of ones personality, a social signal, and a hobby. So for some apparently what kind one rides in is significant.

I'm pretty sure I don't get any "social signal" from using fancy taxis. I think you've got to own the vehicle for that to happen.

Much like buying a museum ticket to see a famous painting isn't comparable to owning the same painting.

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#288

Post by sheepscreek »

ssl-3 wrote: post #98
fhub wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can choose a soothing music play list in the car and it automatically resumes in the next ride Oh wow! There is a non zero chance that was implemented because of some feedback I provided as a trusted tester many months ago. I napped my son in them a lot when they were free and just spent my time thinking up things they should do and reporting them in app.

Man. My daughter's head would sometimes detach from her body and fly around the room by itself. Strapping her down in a car seat and taking her for a drive usually rectified the situation. I look forward to a future where this process can become more automated. (/s, sorta)

> Man. My daughter's head would sometimes detach from her body and fly around the room by itself.

Is this satire, or am I missing something (going by the serious replies)? Not sure I would ever use this phrasing to describe anything serious - much less about my own child.

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#289

Post by diggan »

bluefirebrand wrote: post #285
quectophoton wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Anecdotally they can be 10-25% slower than the rest of traffic I don't know anything about USA, but my understanding of other humans tells me that "Waymo is 10-25% slower than the rest of traffic" actually means "Waymo drives at the legal speed limit for that location, without surpassing it".

So it's a bad driver then, because matching flow of traffic is more important and safer than stubbornly following the exact speed limit

It's a bad driver for adhering to the speed limits?

I'm having a hard time understanding how that makes sense. I understand that matching the flow of traffic is important, but more important than the speed limit? They're there for a reason.

If the speed limit is 30km/h and everyone is driving in 50km/h, you're saying you'll opt for driving at 50km/h?

Besides, if there is multiple lanes, you take the right lane and follow the speed limit. The ones who don't want to adhere to the speed limit, have the left lane(s).

And in the case of it only being one lane, you can literally decide the flow of traffic by adhering to the speed limit, and everyone behind you need to follow it, and once it stabilizes, that's now the flow of traffic, problem solved?

(Just as a disclaimer, I do sometimes drive above the limits myself, but limited only to the highways, never on road with a limit below 120km/h)

Re: Self-driving Waymos secure final clearance for expansion beyond S.F

#290

Post by darby_nine »

tanvach wrote: post #7

We recently started using Waymo more often: - Quality of Lyft and Uber rides have gone down significantly. - Consistently spacious, clean and quiet cars. You know what you'll get. - AC always works and not up to the whim of the driver. - No chatty driver to disturb our sleeping baby. Negatives: - Rides have usually 10% mark up over Lyft and Uber. - Pick up and drop off tend to be a small walk from requested locations…

Wait how do they justify having an even more expensive ride with fewer people to pay? The whole point of cutting the driver out is to save on cost, without that the entire project is no better than uber or lyft (which already overcharges by an arm and a leg)
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