April 28, 2017—Google is now offering free rides in its self-driving Chrysler Pacificas in the Phoenix area, via its Waymo “early rider” program.
The program, which Google deems “a public trial of Waymo’s self-driving vehicles,” is largely geared toward helping Phoenix residents commute to work. Google also noted via its website that it encourages participants in the new program to take rides as frequently as possible. The self-driving Pacifica will still have a human operator inside as a safety measure for the foreseeable future.
Google has put 100 Pacificas through extreme-weather testing in Arizona, California and Michigan. Overall, the company said its Waymo program goes through 1 billion miles of simulation testing per year, and the program’s vehicles have already self-driven nearly 3 million miles on U.S. public roadways.
