Posted on the 14th April 2026 in PHTM News

AI TAKES THE WHEEL AS WAYMO ROBOTAXIS START SELF DRIVING ON LONDON STREETS

The era of autonomous travel has officially arrived in the UK capital as American tech firm Waymo begins letting its cars drive themselves through London’s complex traffic.

While these vehicles have been roaming the city since last autumn, they were previously under the manual control of human "safety drivers." Now, the company has confirmed that its artificial intelligence, the "Waymo Driver," has taken the lead, though a human remains behind the wheel to intervene if necessary.

This transition follows an extensive training period where humans drove the fleet across "tens of thousands of miles on London roads."

According to the company: "The early mileage provides a baseline of context for the Waymo Driver, and has enabled our team to train the Driver in a simulated London environment." 

Within the past few weeks, the AI was finally given control of the steering, marking what Waymo calls "the next step" toward launching "fully autonomous passenger service[s] later this year, pending government approval."

Despite the technological leap, Waymo faces a steep climb to win over a sceptical British public. A recent YouGov poll revealed that 59% of adults would not feel comfortable in a self-driving taxi under any circumstances, while 85% would choose a regular taxi over a driverless one if they were the same cost and convenience.

To counter these fears, the company points to its safety data, claiming its AI is far more reliable than a person. 

"The Waymo Driver was involved in 92% fewer crashes that cause serious or fatal injuries compared to human drivers where we operate,"the firm stated.

Beyond safety, Waymo is pitching the robotaxis as a win for passenger privacy and security, particularly for women.

Nicole Gavel, Waymo’s head of business development, noted that the technology offers a "superhuman level of perception." She told Sky News: "Our sensors are able to perceive the world around them, much better, much more accurately and with more of a field of view than human drivers can."


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