Alphabet’s Waymo can now operate its commercial robotaxi service in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Peninsula, and on San Francisco freeways.The company received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission on Friday. The new approval allows the company to charge for rides in the areas, which now include the San Francisco International Airport. The company already operates within San Francisco and Phoenix.The company applied to expand its driverless services on January 19; however, its approval was delayed by the commission “for further review.”While it was already operating its service in Los Angeles, before Friday’s approval it was not allowed to charge for rides within the city. The approval allows the company to operate its robot taxis on local roads and freeways at a speed of up to 65mph.In an interview with TechCrunch earlier this week Way CEO Tekedra Mawakana said that 15,000 people in Los Angeles were currently using Waymo vehicles to get around and 50,000 people had joined the waitlist. She also indicated that the company likely wouldn’t start charging for rides immediately in the city after it received approval to do so.Driverless vehicles have been deployed in cities with mixed support. Protests against Waymo’s expansion were submitted to the California Public Utilities Commission by the City of South San Francisco, the County of San Mateo, and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation amongst others.The Commission said it received five letters of protest and 81 letters in support of Waymo’s expansion.The expansion comes less than a month after a vacant Waymo taxi was set on fire and vandalized by a crowd during the city’s Chinese New Year celebration.Waymo and Cruise both have been given clearance to operate driverless robotaxis 24/7 in San Francisco. When the companies were approved in August, San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson noted that it had tallied 55 incidents where self-driving vehicles had interfered with rescue operations in the city.One of the vehicles also killed a dog while driving autonomously in the city last June.
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