Mwakana said his company doesn’t think in terms of “how many” [incidents] are acceptable” and the challenge was to ensure that the “bar on safety” was high enough.
Highway routes will initially be available to users who have opted in to early access to the new features before being rolled out more widely.
Passengers will be able to fly to and from San Jose Airport in the San Francisco Bay Area. The company already serves Phoenix Airport, but will now have access to the highway.
Waymo, which launched its paid driverless taxi services in 2020, operates more than 250,000 rides a week. It has a fleet of more than 2,000 vehicles in five US markets, composed primarily of Jaguar Land Rover Electric I-Pace vehicles equipped with its exclusive sensors and computing systems.
Its main US rival Tesla expanded services to the public as part of its robotaxi pilot in Austin, Texas, in September, while Amazon-owned Zoox recently launched services in Las Vegas.
Waymo said its vehicles would be pulled off highways if they encountered technical problems. It also said it has partnered with the Highway Patrol to prepare for situations where the vehicle would need to be towed.
The company has reported more than 1,250 collisions involving its vehicles since 2021, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This includes accidents with passenger vehicles, trucks and other objects, including closed gates.
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