Airport trips are one of the most difficult types of passenger pickup you can muster. The company announced that customers flying in and out of Phoenix's Sky Harbor Airport will now be able to hail one of the company's "rider only" vehicles.
The expansion of the size of the service area in Phoenix and San Francisco is intended to send a message that the business is still going strong despite all the negative publicity.
The product chief of the company said that there was no waiting list, no hours restriction, and no non-disclosure agreements. The reference to hours restrictions is a subtle jab at Cruise, which is only allowed to operate at night in San Francisco.
There was no hours restriction, no waitlist, and no NDAs.
It's not without its own rules. The final approval from the California Public Utilities Commission is needed before the company can begin charging for rides in San Francisco. Some members of the public, as well as employees and their guests, are only allowed to ride in the cars for free.
The time it takes for Waymo to go from testing to commercial operation is shortening. It took about a year and a half in San Francisco and three years in Arizona to go from limited testing to rider-only trips. Panigrahi argued that this boded well for the company's efforts to expand beyond the two cities it operates in.
He said that things are speeding up.
In downtown Phoenix, the service area has doubled to 41.2 square miles, while in San Francisco, the service area has tripled to 46.5 square miles. The company's vehicles can be summoned to travel within a 36 square mile area in the city. Maps were provided for each city.
The service area of the company is in Phoenix. The image was created by Waymo.
The image is from San Francisco.
If there are restrictions on where the vehicles can travel, the business of operating arobotaxi will be hard. There are no limits to human-driven services. Customers can be quick to switch to another service that promises shorter wait times and less restrictions on where they can travel.
As it enters increasingly competitive spaces like the Phoenix airport, Panigrahi said that the company is prepared. He stated that there can be spikes. There are some plans in the works. If demand exceeds initial planned supply, there are assets we can bring to bear quicker.
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