Travel writer Jo Kessel buckles up next to an empty driver’s seat for the ride of her life – in a robo-taxi. Her video of the experience, in San Francisco, shows her hailing the taxi via a mobile app (similar to Uber) and the Jaguar car arriving five minutes later… minus a driver! The video shows the robo-taxi navigating roundabouts and four-way intersections, avoiding pedestrians, rumbling down steep hills – and the weirdness of saying thank you at the end of the ride… to nobody.
Once upon a time, self-driving cars were the stuff of science fiction, but now they’re a reality.
It took 15 years and more than 20million miles of test drives to get there, but back in August the Google-owned autonomous taxi company Waymo One was finally allowed to provide its service to the paying public in San Francisco. And despite being a terrible backseat driver – and not much of a robot fan either – I couldn’t wait to try it out and film the whole experience.
The video starts with me clicking the ‘request button’ on the Waymo app. Nerves and excitement take hold as I’m alerted that the car is on its way and will arrive in five minutes. At first I can see my ride approaching on the screen, but soon enough it’s visible on the horizon, inching closer with a flashing light whirring atop its roof and twirling sensors next to its front and rear lights.
Travel writer Jo Kessel buckles up next to an empty driver’s seat for the ride of her life – in a robo-taxi
It looks like a spacecraft on wheels, but it’s actually an all-electric customised white Jaguar I-Pace – one of 250 in Waymo’s San Francisco fleet.
The car pulls over in a safe spot – and I have to open the doors with the app.
Before I know it I’m sitting next to the empty driver seat, heart in my mouth and buckling up. The journey only begins once the passenger taps the ‘Start Ride’ button on the dashboard and with trepidation I do exactly that.
The car – or rather its dashboard – speaks as we set off, explaining ground rules called ‘riding tips’. It says: ‘We’ll do all the driving. Please don’t touch the steering wheel or pedals during your ride.’
Jo’s video of the experience, in San Francisco, shows her hailing the taxi via a mobile app (similar to Uber ) and the Jaguar car (above) arriving five minutes later… minus a driver, of course
To start the ride, Jo’s video shows – the passenger must press the ‘start’ button on the dashboard
Jo is nervous as the cab sets off
It is simultaneously exciting and nerve-wracking being the passenger in an autonomous vehicle. Watching the steering wheel spin without anyone sitting behind it is extraordinarily surreal, especially when the car does its first left-turn manoeuvre.
Soon afterwards the Waymo reaches an intersection that doesn’t have traffic lights. How will it cope? It hesitates a little, creeping forward once it’s satisfied the coast is clear.
San Francisco is a notoriously hilly city and at times my journey resembles a roller-coaster ride with lots of ups and downs and steep gradients to navigate. There are fears. Will the car brake? How sharply will it brake? What if someone jaywalks?
It turns out the car drives pretty smoothly – smoother than most human drivers – and reliably stops at red lights.
And because Waymo cars are programmed not to exceed the speed limit (mine averages around 20mph) it always feels steady and safe. As for its brakes, while the car does have foot pedals, they’re purely cosmetic and never actually move. They definitely work, however, and are particularly impressive on steep inclines. Whereas most human hill starts involve the car rolling back a little, my Waymo car doesn’t, not even a smidgeon.
Jo writes: ‘It turns out the car drives pretty smoothly – smoother than most human drivers – and reliably stops at red lights’
‘Can it go down hills?’ Jo asks on the video. ‘Yes it can’ is the answer
A music montage towards the end of the film shows how our route follows another Waymo as well as a very cute dog. It also demonstrates the self-driving vehicle’s capabilities as it circles a roundabout and then changes lanes to steer clear of a double-parked car. It’s the reaction from pedestrians, however, which is most amusing. They turn, stare and double-take, as if the car is an A-list celebrity.
By the end of the ride I’ve desensitised to the fact that I’m in a robot car and wish I could do it all over again.
So I do.
I book one a day later when I don’t want to walk home in the dark by myself. Does that ride feel different to my daytime one?
Actually, yes!
Women can feel vulnerable alone in a taxi with a male driver. Being in the driverless Waymo feels much safer, something I hadn’t considered prior to riding.
‘By the end of the ride I’ve desensitised to the fact that I’m in a robot car and wish I could do it all over again,’ writes Jo. ‘So I do.’ Pictured above is another Waymo car that Jo’s cab tails for a brief time
‘Women can feel vulnerable alone in a taxi with a male driver,’ writes Jo. ‘Being in the driverless Waymo feels much safer, something I hadn’t considered prior to riding’
Better still is the fare – $24 (£19) for a roundtrip 40-minute journey. And for no extra cost I’m allowed to get out halfway and call another cab when I’m ready to restart the ride. My night-time journey comes in cheaper at $10 (£8). And gratuities aren’t expected – you’re not even given the chance to tip. This already feels reasonably priced, but Waymo promises fares will come down as they scale up.
It is strange having nobody to thank at the end of the ride – my ‘thank you’ to the car as I get out rather falls on deaf ears.
But I’d definitely like to ride with Waymo again. Their driverless taxis are also available in Phoenix, Arizona, and will soon be coming to Los Angeles as well as Austin, Texas. Fancy a futuristic ‘no hands’ car ride? Best sign-up now. It’s so popular that there’s currently a six-month waiting list!
Sign up here to join the waiting list – waymo.com/waitlist.
For more videos from Jo, visit her YouTube channel, Go With Jo. www.youtube.com/@gowithjo1
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