Robotaxis Now Patrol San Francisco 24/7
First major US city to get full service sees problems in its first weekend.
Decision could make way for expansion of driverless taxis in other areas of the U.S., where the technology has drawn skepticism due to safety concerns.
IMAGE: Cruise
San Francisco gave two providers the green light for self-driving taxis to expand in the city and operate there round the clock.
Cruise and Waymo got the go-ahead from the California Public Utilities Commission, which voted three to one to approve the expanded service, including more operating taxis.
San Franciso is now the first major U.S. city to allow fully autonomous taxis citywide and round the clock after Waymo introduced the service in Chandler, Ariz. in 2020, followed by downtown Phoenix.
The move could make way for expansion of driverless taxis in other areas of the U.S., where the self-driving technology has drawn skepticism due to safety concerns.
The weekend after the San Francisco expansion, deployed Cruise taxis caused a traffic jam on narrow streets in the city’s North Beach neighborhood, about a dozen of them frozen in place as they struggled to navigate the tight area on a busy night. Cruise told news reporters that wireless connectivity issues and the nearby Outside Lands Music Festival led to the jam.
General Motors is Cruise’s majority owner, and Waymo is owned by Alphabet, parent company of Google.
DIG DEEPER: Consumers Favor Automated Safety Over Self-Driving Tech
More Dealer Ops
Dealer Debrief: Defection Data & EV Updates
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence discusses how to use defection data to your advantage and the latest on EV sales and charging infrastructure.
Read More →
How Defection Data is Bridging the Dealership Conversion Gap
Lead volume is flat, cross-shopping is up and brand loyalty is in retreat. As confident sales teams keep losing buyers they thought they had, daily industry sales data is showing dealers exactly where their funnel is breaking and how to fix it without buying a single new lead.
Read More →
Dealer Debrief: Where are you losing customers?
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence discusses the hidden leaks in dealerships where you might be losing customers without even realizing it.
Read More →
Dealer Debrief: Improving Your Inventory Management
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence covers a new survey that shows what service technicians really want and two launches that could help improve your inventory and vehicle life cycle management.
Read More →
Ladies and Gentlemen, This Is a Dealership: Why the Fundamentals Still Decide Who Wins
A teaching moment by a legendary football coach happens to apply perfectly in the auto retail space. Learn what it is and how to use it to your store’s advantage.
Read More →
What Market Timing Mistakes Mean for Your Reinsurance Program
When volatility hits, dealer-owned reinsurance programs face a familiar temptation: pull back and wait for calmer waters. New data from BOK Financial shows why that instinct can quietly cost you years of surplus growth.
Read More →
Dealer Ads and the FTC
The agency has made it clear in recent enforcement actions and warnings, in auto retail and other industries, that advertised prices must include all nonoptional costs to the consumer.
Read More →
Used Autos Supply Dwindles
The March shopping surge, despite high prices, cut into inventory by the most since the thick of the pandemic, Cox Automotive analysts calculated.
Read More →
Managing Risk Effectively Through Changing Times
The variables influencing risk pricing have changed significantly over the past five years. Being proactive and responsive to emerging trends is not optional but essential.
Read More →
Survey Reveals What Won't Fix What's Breaking Car Sales
AutoPayPlus says extra-long auto loans are trapping consumers and threatening the dealer trade-in cycle, and that the industry is leveraging the wrong tools to combat high MSRPs.
Read More →