Waymo’s driverless vehicles coming to 3 more American cities

(KSWB/KUSI) — Three more U.S. cities will soon be getting Waymo’s self-driving vehicles, the company announced Monday.

Residents of San Diego, Las Vegas and Detroit can expect the rollout of the company’s vehicles in the next months, joining five other American cities where the vehicles already ferry passengers.

Service in the three cities is coming in 2026, but a specific launch date is unknown. Waymo, a subsidiary of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has usually launched service with engineers in the vehicle for some time before deploying fully autonomous vehicles.

The company said on Monday that it has been testing its vehicles in the winter weather of Detroit to improve its driving on snow and ice.

The company touts its vehicles as safer than human drivers, but, like any other vehicle on a roadway used by people, they have been involved in crashes, and have also created other interesting situations that come with being a fully autonomous robotaxi.

In California, the company’s vehicles, electric Jaguar I-Paces, can be hailed via app in San Francisco and several Bay Area and Silicon Valley cities, as well as parts of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood and Inglewood.

The vehicles also operate in Phoenix, Atlanta and Austin, with plans in motion to bring the service to more American cities and even to London.