Waymo's Freeway Gamble: Are We Ready to Trust Robots at 70 MPH?
So, Waymo's hitting the freeways now, huh? After conquering… or, uh, occupying the slow lanes of LA, San Francisco, and Phoenix, they figure it's time to unleash the robotaxis on the unsuspecting public at 70 miles per hour. What could possibly go wrong? Waymo taxis are coming to Los Angeles and Bay Area freeways
The "Safety" Hype Train
Dmitri Dolgov, Waymo's co-chief, is quoted as saying it "took time to do it properly with a strong focus on system safety and reliability.” Oh, really Dmitri? Because last time I checked, "system safety" involved human beings behind the wheel, not lines of code and a prayer. And I'm sure that AI is prepared to handle the "unique demands and variables" of a sudden California lane split... said no one who's ever actually driven in California.
Let's be real, "safety" is just a PR buzzword here. It's what they have to say. What they don't say is how many near-misses they've swept under the rug, or how many times their "robust safety protocols" have relied on a human safety driver slamming on the brakes at the last second.
The Human Cost
But hey, who cares about a few minor fender-benders when there's "innovation" to be had, right? Nevermind the article that points out Waymo's arrival in San Francisco has taxi drivers begging for debt relief. Evelyn Engel from the San Francisco Taxi Workers Alliance says drivers are "struggling and exhausted." Slightly more than 700 drivers have bought medallions since 2010, and not a single one has been sold since 2016. Over 40% have lost them to foreclosure.
Waymo appeals to people who "don’t want to interact with a driver, another human being,” Engel says. Translation: "We're actively encouraging social isolation while simultaneously putting hardworking immigrants out of a job." Progress!
Anshu Gaba, a yellow cab driver for 28 years, says he lost a lot of his savings and future plans when Uber rolled into town. “A lot of my savings were gone and my plans for the future – like retirement and supporting my children for their education — weren’t there anymore,” said Gaba. “It was a stressful time. But I’ve already been through that.” So, what's he supposed to do now, learn how to code?
And offcourse, the Independent Drivers Guild is already fighting back, with Brendan Sexton saying NYC isn't a "testing ground for Silicon Valley's profit-driven experiments."
The NYC Nightmare Scenario
Speaking of New York, remember when Waymo got permission to test self-driving cars there? Graham Hodges, a history professor, called it a "rich guy's fantasy." And let's not forget Zohran Mamdani, the newly elected mayor, who went on a hunger strike to help taxi drivers. I'd pay good money to see the look on his face when a fleet of Waymos starts clogging up the FDR Drive. Waymo’s Self-Driving Cars Hit NYC Streets, Sparking Concerns for Taxi Drivers
But wait, it gets better. To go fully autonomous in NYC, Waymo needs to convince New York State to change its laws. Which means more lobbying, more backroom deals, and more money lining the pockets of politicians who couldn't care less about the working class.
Here's a thought: Maybe instead of pouring billions into driverless cars, we could invest in, oh I don't know, actual public transportation? You know, trains and buses that don't require algorithms to navigate a pothole-ridden street. Just a thought...
The Inevitable Dystopia
So, what's the endgame here? A world where we're all hurtling down the highway in sterile, driverless pods, staring at our screens and avoiding human contact? A world where the only jobs left are coding algorithms for the robots that replaced us? Ain't that a bleak vision.
I'm not saying self-driving cars are inherently evil, but the way they're being rolled out—with zero regard for the human cost—is a recipe for disaster. It's like we're so obsessed with "progress" that we've forgotten what it means to be human. Then again, maybe I'm just a grumpy old Luddite clinging to a dying world.