Waymo Brings Driverless Jaguars to London Streets
Google’s self-driving arm, Waymo, has made a slick entrance into London. The tech giant posted a buzzing snap of its autonomous Jaguar I-Pace cruising past the iconic Abbey Road zebra crossing.
“The Waymo Driver has landed in London! We’re gearing up to deliver our safe, reliable, and downright magical driverless ride-hailing service to the city next year,” the company announced.
Tech That Never Blinks: Meet the Driverless Jaguars
What’s behind the wheel? Waymo’s clever ‘Waymo Driver’ software that never gets drunk, tired, or distracted. These smart cars come armed with a lethal mix of cameras, radar, and 3D lidar scanners spotting objects up to 500 metres away from every angle.
For now, human safety drivers keep watch during trials across London. The goal? To kick them out of the driver’s seat once the tech is fully road-ready.
London Boroughs Turn Into Driverless Test Zones
Waymo is road-testing across a wide patch of London including Barking and Dagenham, Camden, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea, and Westminster.
Quirky detail: the Jaguars still sport left-hand drive steering wheels, a nod to their American roots despite UK’s left-hand traffic.
Government Backs Self-Driving Revolution with New Laws
Last week, the Department for Transport launched a fresh consultation to tweak rules on autonomous vehicles. This builds on last year’s landmark law that cleared the way for driverless cars on UK roads.
The UK government is buzzing about the future, forecasted to create 38,000 jobs and pump a whopping £42 billion into the economy by 2035 thanks to self-driving technology.
