NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Riders in the Music City may soon hop into their rideshare and see no driver in the front seat.
Fully autonomous rides, or driverless rides, are coming to Nashville through a new partnership between Waymo and Lyft.
People can start ordering rides in the Waymo vehicles early next year, according to an announcement by the company on Wednesday.
On its website, Waymo calls itself “the world’s first autonomous ride-hailing service.” It also claims that “Waymo’s technology is significantly safer than human drivers” in its current service regions.
The white self-driving cars with large sensors on the outside have been working to learn Nashville’s roads for more than a year with humans behind the wheel to take control if an issue arises. In the coming months, Waymo said the cars will start driving on their own.
A Waymo spokesperson said their vehicles can operate at all hours and for much longer than a human can safely drive a car, which “helps make rides more consistently available for riders across both platforms, and we believe ensures more rides can be provided with fewer vehicles on the road.”
People who live in Nashville said they are both excited and nervous to try to autonomous cars to get around the city. Their biggest concern was the computers being able to process busy areas like Lower Broadway and around the constantly changing construction zones.
“I think testing is a big part,” Nashville resident Peter Do said. “Because Nashville roads, they are so different, they’re so unique, that I think a lot of testing is going to be needed for people to feel safe in a Waymo.”
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The company cites studies that show their cars are five-times safer than cars driven by humans. An investigation by WSMV’s sister station, Arizona’s Family, found the Waymo data did not include cases where a confused Waymo caused other vehicles to crash, and the Waymo car wasn’t touched.
In fact, a six-month review of police reports on Waymo crashes in the Phoenix area uncovered several crashes where the Waymo vehicle was at fault, including driverless cars crossing the double yellow line and hitting other cars head-on.
“I saw one sometime last week and it was a really strange experience,” Nashville resident Chloe Beehm said. “They seem cool, but they’re just kind of weird to know the car is just driving you and you have no control over it.”
Waymo is currently operating in Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco, Atlanta and Austin. The tech company’s website says it is also planning operations in Miami and D.C.
The company said it selected Nashville as its next destination because it’s a “very open-minded and forward looking city” that has a lot of tourism and economic growth for people to use the service.
People will be able to order a car through the Waymo app when the rides first launch in Nashville, according to a spokesperson. Lyft riders will be given the opportunity to match with a Waymo car as the service grows.
“This partnership brings together best-in-class autonomous vehicles with best-in-class customer experience,” said Lyft CEO David Risher. “Waymo has proven that its autonomous technology works at scale. When combined with Lyft’s customer-obsession and world-class fleet management capabilities, it’s two great tastes that go great together.”
Waymo said the rides will be priced similarly to other ride-hailing services in Nashville.
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