‘I travelled inside a driverless Waymo car – this is what it’s like’

When I first saw the announcement on Wednesday that Waymo was ‘bringing our fully autonomous ride-hailing service – with no human behind the wheel’ to London, my immediate reaction was one of sheer joy. Followed by terror.

Then excitement, fear, exhilaration and immense curiosity. Similar emotions I’d describe I felt when I used Waymo on a trip to San Francisco last year.

Note the ‘no human behind the wheel’ part in the announcement, and if, like me, you are not a tech geek or clued up on the future of autonomous cars – that pretty much sums it up.

To make it even more basic, it’s a robot taxi that is gearing up to launch in London next year. And yes, it has no driver.

If that part scares you, let me reassure you that if I can ride a Waymo – numerous times – then so can you, as I am the most fearful person around.

Flying, rollercoasters, swimming in the sea; a drop in the ocean for some, but not me. I am basically terrified of everything.

And, to make it worse, I like to be in control. Not the best traits for someone who was one of the first passengers to ride a Waymo on holiday in San Francisco when it first launched in 2024.

That said, it was one of the most smashing experiences I have ever had.

No pun intended – I lived to tell the tale, arrived safely at my destination each time and no cars, people, objects, buildings or pets were harmed in the process.

That, however, brings me on to one of the biggest questions surrounding autonomous vehicles, which is, naturally, safety.

Ahead of agreeing (at my family’s persuasion) to use the service – that is super easy to book via an app – I had to Google the safety research and statistics of the US firm.

They were extremely reassuring, and even a deep dive into how many collisions there had been since the service started revealed very little.

I did note, however, that there had been a reported incident of a dog being knocked over; something deemed unavoidable by the company due to the dog apparently running in front of a vehicle.

The only other negative reviews came from locals complaining the cars came alive at night, honking at each other and waking residents around the San Francisco parking lot where they are left when not making trips.

That made me laugh, as what I learnt about the cars is that they are built to honk at each other, as they are trained to do on the road when other cars get close to them. And honk ours did!

After a shot of whiskey to calm my nerves and a booking to take us from our hotel to the Golden Gate Bridge – a 28-minute drive – I eagerly waved down our approaching car. First error.

Second error was to argue with my two adult sons that all three of us should sit in the back in case we crashed. Yes. Those exact words came out of my mouth!

As any stressed out woman will agree, being told to relax when in a state of high anxiety is the worst thing to hear.

Fortunately, for my family, it didn’t come from them, but a calm voice in the car – the same automated female that told me to ‘put your seatbelt on and do not touch the steering wheel or pedals on the drive’.

Was she kidding me? I’d have superglued myself to the seat had I had the option.

A few minutes into my ride, I could feel myself relaxing, noticing the responsible pace the car travels at and the way it stopped gently at traffic lights, letting pedestrians cross and yes, even hooting vehicles attempting to overtake us. It also helps that I feel almost like a celebrity.

People seem to be stopping and staring at me, taking my photograph, waving at me and videoing me on their phones.

Since the service is so new, it is a novelty to everyone who spots the cars (a tell-tale sign is they have a robot-like box at the top of the car that contains all the software and hardware) oh – and the fact there is no driver!

And I even find myself making eye contact with other Waymo passengers we pass who are also in the same state of bewilderment.

As for the car itself, it is clean and spacious, but for the most part, I just stare at the steering wheel going round and round; twisting and turning on its own, it’s like there’s a ghost up front.

There’s also a lot of other fancy stuff, including a touchscreen to adjust the temperature, and you can choose the music you want from a keypad.

During the ride, you can also follow along on the two in-car screens and see what Waymo sees, which is pretty cool in itself.

Warmed by the whiskey and the reassurance that the car’s software, sensors and everything else was keeping me safe, I didn’t want the journey to end.

Yes, I began the journey with that rush of adrenaline you get when you are in an uncomfortable situation and have that internal debate with yourself of is this safe?

It must be safe, because otherwise they wouldn’t let you do it, right? And yes, it is.

So much so, I used the app three more times in San Francisco, because it was so easy, fun, convenient, and I didn’t need to make small talk with a stranger.

So, should you say no way or yes to way-mo? I’m certainly of the latter camp.

The only bad news is when the service does start up in London, don’t expect an empty car to pull up in front of you just yet – a safety driver will be behind the wheel.

Kind of defeats the purpose, but hopefully it won’t be too long before you hitch a ride in a taxi without a driver. It’s way (mo)re fun than any other cab!

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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