London rollout of robotaxis delayed amid lack of guidance for firms to follow
Uber and Wayve had said they would start trips ‘later this summer’ but launch now looks unlikely this year The rollout of robotaxis on the streets of London is unlikely to happen this year, as regulatory and technical hurdles push back the ambitious schedule set out by the UK government. Only weeks ago Uber and London-based Wayve were granted the first minicab licences in the capital to allow…
The rollout of robotaxis in London has been delayed due to regulatory and technical challenges, making it unlikely that the ambitious schedule set by the UK government will be met this year. Initially, Uber and Wayve, two companies offering self-driving taxi rides with a human safety driver, had planned to begin trips "later this summer."
However, progress has since slowed, and Transport for London (TfL) has not yet published the necessary guidance for companies to win approval. Christina Calderato, TfL's director of strategy, recently stated that the transit authority would not be accepting applications "for some time." Uber and Wayve had promised over 100,000 Londoners a place on their waiting list for self-driving taxis, competing against tech giants like Google's Waymo and China's Baidu.
Despite being available in more than 20 cities worldwide, robotaxis remain a US, Chinese, and Middle Eastern phenomenon. Waymo recently announced plans to launch commercial operations in Munich, Germany, by late next year, while Baidu intends to roll out public rides in London next year. TfL has granted 15 private hire vehicle licences to Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles equipped with Wayve's AI software, with a human driver present during trips.
Wayve plans to introduce a fully autonomous Nissan Leaf later this year, acknowledging that the regulatory process is the primary hurdle to overcome.
Written by urgent.news from Guardian Technology's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
