By Norihiko Shirouzu
(Reuters) -Alphabet’s Waymo plans to start out providing autonomous cab rides in Nashville subsequent yr in collaboration with ride-hailing agency Lyft, the 2 firms stated.
Riders within the Music Metropolis will initially have the ability to hail self-driving cabs by means of the Waymo app. Because the service grows, riders may even have the ability to use the Lyft app to match with a Waymo automobile, the businesses stated in an announcement.
As a part of the settlement, Lyft will make investments an undisclosed sum in an autonomous automobile fleet-management facility, the place it’s going to cost and preserve Waymo autos. Lyft’s companies ought to maximize the time Waymo’s autos are in operation and cut back prices, the 2 firms stated.
It could be the primary business deployment of Waymo’s driverless taxis on the Lyft ride-hailing community. Waymo already affords rides in Austin, Texas, and Atlanta by means of the Uber app.
Waymo’s fleet in Nashville is predicted to develop to tons of of autos over time, in keeping with the corporate.
Waymo has been ramping up operations within the U.S. because the robotaxi race heats up. Tesla deployed a restricted robotaxi service in Austin in June. The electrical-vehicle firm has stated it plans to broaden the service to the San Francisco Bay Space.
After beginning in Phoenix in 2020, Waymo now affords paid driverless rides to most people within the San Francisco Bay Space, together with components of Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin and Atlanta.
Along with Nashville, the corporate has plans to broaden operations to Miami, Washington, D.C., Dallas and Denver. It additionally lately obtained a allow to start testing its autonomous autos in New York Metropolis with a skilled specialist behind the wheel.
(Reporting By Norihiko Shirouzu in Austin; Enhancing by Mike Colias and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
