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The US-based firm Waymo has revealed that its self-driving cabs will be on offer for booking on London's roads starting next year.

UK Capital Named as First European City for Self-Driving Cab Service.

The UK capital will be established as the inaugural European city to launch an self-driving taxi service, comparable with those currently in use in San Francisco and several American cities utilizing Waymo's cutting-edge systems.

First Trials to Start with Safety Drivers.

Waymo confirmed that its vehicles are now traveling to London and will begin navigating on the capital's streets in the coming weeks with safety drivers behind the wheel.

Waymo – initially established as a spin-off from Google's autonomous vehicle project and part of the Alphabet family – indicated it would expand operations and work closely with the UK transport authorities and the city's mobility organization to secure the essential approvals to deliver totally self-driving rides by 2026.

Expanding Presence in Self-Driving Mobility In London.

Additional firms, such as Uber and the UK-based technology firm Wayve, have also announced their own plans to pilot autonomous taxis in the capital next year.

This is in response to the government officials stating it would speed up rules allowing public testing to occur before legislation supporting autonomous cars passes in full.

“It is exciting that Waymo aims to launch their services to London next year, under our proposed piloting scheme,” commented the government minister, Heidi Alexander.

“Supporting the AV industry will increase accessible transport options in addition to bringing jobs, funding, and prospects to the UK. Cutting-edge investment like this will assist in achieving our goal to be global pioneers in emerging tech and drive countrywide development.”

Full Launch Projected After Regulatory Framework Takes Effect.

A fuller introduction of autonomous cabs is anticipated in the UK after the Automated Vehicles Act is fully implemented in 2027.

Waymo's Current Connections in the UK and Internationally.

Waymo already has links to Britain after opening its inaugural European engineering hub in Oxford in 2019.

It is also introducing operations in Tokyo using Jaguar Land Rover EVs, marking its only other existing project outside the United States.

“We've demonstrated how to responsibly scale completely driverless taxi services, and we look forward to bring the positive impacts of our platform to the UK,” stated the company executive, explaining that the system was “enhancing transport security and travel more accessible”.

Proven Track Record in the United States.

Waymo introduced its driverless taxis in 2020 and currently reports it has carried in excess of 10 million passengers in the United States.

Regardless of some concerning occurrences, Waymo stated that evidence showed that cars driven by people were linked to incidents that harmed walkers 12 times more often than its autonomous vehicles.