Waymo’s self-driving vehicles will soon begin picking up passengers in Denver without the human attendants who’ve been present as the company has tested its robotaxis on the city’s streets.
But for now, only Waymo’s own employees can ride.
That’s the next phase for Waymo, which began operating its autonomous white Jaguars and blue Zeekrs in Denver in September. The vehicles, equipped with rotating black cameras on the roof as well as radar, have learned the city and collected data to help develop Waymo systems’ ability to adapt to winter road conditions.
On each excursion, human handlers have sat at the wheel, ready to take over if needed. The company will shift away from having attendants on board, with employees set to hail rides in parts of central Denver including Baker, Cherry Creek and the River North Art District in coming weeks. Waymo in San Diego, Las Vegas and Tampa, too.
Waymo’s goal is to operate like Lyft or Uber, which are partners in some cities and competitors in others. It’s unclear when Waymo will open its ride-hailing service to the public in Denver, as it’s done in more than 10 cities.
On Tuesday, the company stuck to its earlier timeline of sometime in 2026.
“We plan to go fully autonomous in the coming weeks and are working to open our doors to riders later this year, though we don’t have a specific date to share,” Waymo spokeswoman Sandy Karp wrote in an email.
The company said it would add its newest minivan-like vehicle, , to its Denver fleet. The electric vehicle is equipped with Waymo’s latest generation system, which Waymo says is better at navigating snowy conditions.
With artificial intelligence-powered systems in control of steering, acceleration and braking, Waymo and its competitors cite data showing their vehicles operate more safely than human drivers.
Crash data for vehicles powered by automated driving systems include three incidents in Colorado, according to . Nationally, that database includes 505 crash reports this year through mid-May, with an average 122 crash reports per month during the first four months of the year.
Waymo says its vehicles now drive 4 million miles per week. Late last month, Waymo reported on of more than 220 million “fully autonomous miles” driven by its vehicles through March in five cities.
Compared with human drivers in those areas, the company says, “the Waymo Driver was involved in 94% fewer crashes causing serious or fatal injuries, 82% fewer crashes in which an airbag deployed, and 82% fewer crashes involving any reported injury.”
Colorado has generally been regarded as having a more permissive regulatory environment for self-driving vehicles than some states, including California. Once Waymo opens its service to the public, it’ll fall under the oversight of the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, which also regulates taxi companies.
A PUC spokesperson previously told The Denver Post that Waymo would be subject to licensing, safety and insurance requirements, and crash reporting mandates.
