{"id":52206,"date":"2025-11-19T03:55:07","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T03:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/52206\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T03:55:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T03:55:07","slug":"autonomous-rideshare-waymo-launching-in-orlando","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/52206\/","title":{"rendered":"Autonomous rideshare Waymo launching in Orlando"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe future of rideshare transportation is heading to Central Florida. Waymo announced Thursday that its self-driving robo-taxis will begin operating on Orlando roads in the coming weeks, marking a major expansion of the company\u2019s autonomous vehicle network.Waymo revealed five new cities where it plans to launch full driverless service: Miami, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Orlando.Reactions among Orlando residents are mixed.\u201cI think it\u2019s a good thing to explore more and how it is,\u201d said John George, who previously tried Waymo\u2019s service in Phoenix. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty convenient and I also find it safe.\u201dOthers aren\u2019t convinced the technology is ready \u2014 especially in Florida\u2019s fast-moving traffic.\u201cI\u2019m not with the self-driving,\u201d said bus rider Linda Travis. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t trust it with a 10-foot pole \u2026 nobody\u2019s really driving.\u201dWaymo has been testing its vehicles in Orlando since the spring with a safety operator behind the wheel. A company representative said the rollout will begin with a small fleet covering a significant portion of the metro area, with plans to expand over time.Orange County Commissioner Mike Scott said Waymo has spent months mapping the region to prepare for the launch.\u201cNights, weekends at times to prepare for the launch,\u201d Scott said. \u201cWe\u2019re excited for the transportation but also potential job opportunities for people who are looking.\u201dScott said county leaders plan to meet with Waymo next week as the company ramps up operations.\u201cAny time with new technology, there\u2019s hesitation and people who are scared,\u201d he said. \u201cSo understanding what safeguards they have to make sure people are safe.\u201dA Waymo representative said the company is confident its robo-taxis can operate safely in Orlando, citing its experience in other markets where it already runs autonomous services or has conducted testing.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tORANGE COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

The future of rideshare transportation is heading to Central Florida. <\/p>\n

Waymo announced Thursday that its self-driving robo-taxis will begin operating on Orlando roads<\/a> in the coming weeks, marking a major expansion of the company\u2019s autonomous vehicle network.<\/p>\n

Waymo revealed five new cities where it plans to launch full driverless service: Miami, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Orlando.<\/p>\n

Reactions among Orlando residents are mixed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a good thing to explore more and how it is,\u201d said John George, who previously tried Waymo\u2019s service in Phoenix. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty convenient and I also find it safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others aren\u2019t convinced the technology is ready \u2014 especially in Florida\u2019s fast-moving traffic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not with the self-driving,\u201d said bus rider Linda Travis. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t trust it with a 10-foot pole \u2026 nobody\u2019s really driving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waymo has been testing its vehicles in Orlando since the spring with a safety operator behind the wheel. A company representative said the rollout will begin with a small fleet covering a significant portion of the metro area, with plans to expand over time.<\/p>\n

Orange County Commissioner Mike Scott said Waymo has spent months mapping the region to prepare for the launch.<\/p>\n

\u201cNights, weekends at times to prepare for the launch,\u201d Scott said. \u201cWe\u2019re excited for the transportation but also potential job opportunities for people who are looking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott said county leaders plan to meet with Waymo next week as the company ramps up operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny time with new technology, there\u2019s hesitation and people who are scared,\u201d he said. \u201cSo understanding what safeguards they have to make sure people are safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Waymo representative said the company is confident its robo-taxis can operate safely in Orlando, citing its experience in other markets where it already runs autonomous services or has conducted testing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The future of rideshare transportation is heading to Central Florida. Waymo announced Thursday that its self-driving robo-taxis will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":52207,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[32872,147,4626,29901,17345,139,141,140,670,992,32871,15060,726,1576,2393,24480,1098],"class_list":["post-52206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-autonomous-rideshare-waymo-launching","tag-central-florida","tag-company","tag-launch","tag-operation","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-other","tag-people","tag-rideshare-transportation","tag-scott","tag-service","tag-technology","tag-time","tag-waymo","tag-weekend"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52206"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52206\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}