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Self-driving car from Waymo and Jaguar, I-Pace, driving in traffic in San Francisco, California, June 14, 2021. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

Waymo, a Mountain View-based self-driving car company, says it has clearance from the Department of Motor Vehicles to expand operations in both Northern and Southern California with its eyes set on San Diego next. 

What we know:

The autonomous vehicle company on Friday posted on social media that their service is planned for San Diego in mid-2026. 

“The amended DMV permit enables Waymo to operate fully autonomously in more of Northern and Southern California, including the entire Bay Area and Sacramento, and a contiguous area spanning from Santa Clarita to San Diego,” Waymo said in a statement. 

The tech company, owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, clarified that this permit allows for both their Jaguars and Zeekr RT models to be included in their fleets. Motortrend recently reported the Zeekr RT model is a made by a subsidiary of China’s Geely, whick also owns Volvo. The Zeekr is more like a van, compared to Waymo’s Jaguar seen rolling on the hills of San Francisco. 

The DMV has posted the areas of operation Waymo is approved for driverless testing and deployment in the State of California. 

The company says they provide over one million rides every month in San Francisco and Los Angeles. They highlight their vehicle’s safety and reliability, but last month in San Francisco, the safety of the vehicles came into question when one of their vehicles ran over a beloved bodega cat from the Mission District, killing it. 

In the aftermath of that incident, a San Francisco supervisor called for a resolution that would give people more say in how autonomous vehicle technology is used in their communities. She questioned why San Francisco has been allowed to be used as a testing ground for autonomous vehicles. 

Waymo’s statement said they will need to apply for the corresponding California Public Utilities Commission driverless deployment permit before opening to the public in San Diego, or utilizing our next vehicle platform for commercial operations.

We are reaching out to the DMV for more on this developing story and will provide an update as soon as we hear more. 

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