The largest fleet of robo-taxis in San Francisco is about to go totally driverless.
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Some people are nervous about the removal of human safety drivers from self-driving vehicles.
It's been six months since Waymo rolled out self-driving SUVs in San Francisco and during that time there have been humans behind the wheel, just in case anything goes wrong. But now in a blog post the company has announced it's ready to remove those safety drivers.
"(It's) concerning," Natalia Dearman told KCBS Radio. "I mean, I don't fully understand the mechanisms behind it, but I would prefer someone to be there as a safety precaution."
Waymo argues its self-driving technology is actually safer than human motorists.
Waymo's Head of Ride Hailing Lety Cavalcante told KCBS Radio last year that almost all of the crashes their vehicles have been involved in were caused by distracted drivers. "Driver is not paying attention," she explained. "He's texting and hits us in the back (bumper) at a stop sign of something like that."
There's no timeline for the removal of safety drivers.
Waymo still needs to get a permit from state regulators.
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