PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — City Council had plenty of questions, but didn’t get many answers, at a hearing Tuesday on driverless rideshare cars in the city.
Driverless Waymo cars are already being tested on the streets of Philadelphia. The primary question asked by City Council members was, ‘What can the city do to regulate them?’ The city's answer was not much, since the city is preempted from governing the technology by state law.
At a joint hearing by Council’s committees on Labor and Civil Service, and Transportation and Public Utilities, Haverford College computer science professor Sorelle Friedler testified that autonomous cars can and do make mistakes.
“Self-driving cars have been stopped in the street by puddles, gone the wrong way down a one-way street, and stopped on rail tracks when there was an oncoming train,” the professor said.
Councilmember Rue Landau had questions about cybersecurity and possible job losses.
“You’ve got all of these workers here who might be out of a job, who might get cut wages. You’ve got all of us who have very serious questions to ask. And Waymo is not here to answer,” she said.
Waymo submitted its testimony in writing. The company is working with PennDOT to get a permit to begin full operations.
A Waymo spokesperson, in a statement to KYW Newsradio, said the company plans to invest tens of millions of dollars to support its Philadelphia service, adding that Waymo’s technology is involved in 92 percent fewer collisions, causing injuries.
The spokesperson said Pennsylvania law allows certified operators to run vehicles without a safety driver, and that relitigating the issue in City Council ignores the law and the opportunity that fully autonomous vehicles would bring to Philadelphia.
