Waymo to launch the Robotaxi service in Washington, DC in 2026

Waymo said on Tuesday that he would start presenting Robotaxi Rides via Waymo One in Washington, DC in 2026.

Before you can trade it commercially, the company will have to raise the pressure game in the Capitol, as self -ruling vehicle permits still require a person behind the wheel.

The news comes from Waymo while the alphabet -owned company expands its Robotaxi coverage to install it before potential competitors such as Amazon’s Zoox and Elon Musk’s Tesla. Musk said that Tesla will launch a roboti service in Austin this summer and California at some point this year.

Waymo already runs a commercial service in Phoenix, Los AngelesGulf region, and recently Austin, in Partnership with a horse riding company Uber. Waymo also plans to launch the Robotaxi service via Uber in Atlanta this year, and has already begun to transport employees in completely independent vehicles in the city. Miami is the next in the general launch list in Waymo for the year 2026, along with the capital

To increase more enthusiasm and awareness, Waymo said it was planning to start drawing maps in 10 cities this year, including Las Vegas and San Diego, until Monday, Nashville.

The Waymo DC announcement comes two months after the company launched a small test fleet of Jaguar I-Pace in the city, where she was driving manually and independently tested with a safety driver behind the wheel.

The Waymo business model depends on removing the human driver from the car. The company said that it will work with policy makers to update the rules of declaration in the province to allow self -ruling on public road driving.