JUST SCAN THE QR CODE TO GET GAS PRICES WHERE YOU LIVE. AND WAYMO NOW TESTING ITS CARS IN AUTONOMOUS MODE IN SACRAMENTO. MAYBE YOU’VE SEEN THEM. THE COMPANY SAYS THAT A PERSON IS STILL BEHIND THE WHEEL RIGHT NOW. DURING THE INITIAL TESTING, THE COMPANY WAS MANUALLY DRIVING THE CARS. WAYMO ANNOUNCED ITS SACRAMENTO EXPANSION IN FEBRUARY. WE DID ASK WHEN IT PLANS O
Waymo begins autonomous testing for robotaxi fleet in Sacramento, company confirms
Updated: 8:50 AM PDT Jul 9, 2026
The robotaxi service that has some excited and others wary has begun its testing of vehicles driving autonomously around Sacramento.Waymo first announced its expansion into the state capital in February and had been manually testing and programming its fleet to learn the city’s roads. In a Wednesday email, the company confirmed vehicles are now “in autonomous mode with an autonomous specialist behind the wheel in Sacramento.”There is still no service launch timeline, however, Waymo said.Once it does launch, riders will be able to hail a vehicle as they would other rideshares, such as Lyft or Uber. The difference would be that there would be no one in the driver’s seat.When Waymo first made its announcement, Sacramento city leaders expressed eagerness for the company, believing this will make streets safer and reduce pedestrian deaths.However, some still hold reservations about an autonomous vehicle’s ability to adapt to quickly changing conditions. Earlier this year, there were reports of situations where the robotaxis had killed pets and blocked traffic.Most recently, a Waymo drove over fireworks in San Francisco as they were still igniting.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel | Make KCRA a preferred news source in Google
The robotaxi service that has some excited and others wary has begun its testing of vehicles driving autonomously around Sacramento.
Waymo first announced its expansion into the state capital in February and had been manually testing and programming its fleet to learn the city’s roads.
In a Wednesday email, the company confirmed vehicles are now “in autonomous mode with an autonomous specialist behind the wheel in Sacramento.”
There is still no service launch timeline, however, Waymo said.
Once it does launch, riders will be able to hail a vehicle as they would other rideshares, such as Lyft or Uber. The difference would be that there would be no one in the driver’s seat.
When Waymo first made its announcement, Sacramento city leaders expressed eagerness for the company, believing this will make streets safer and reduce pedestrian deaths.
However, some still hold reservations about an autonomous vehicle’s ability to adapt to quickly changing conditions. Earlier this year, there were reports of situations where the robotaxis had killed pets and blocked traffic.
Most recently, a Waymo drove over fireworks in San Francisco as they were still igniting.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel | Make KCRA a preferred news source in Google