Tech Lead – Fleet Response Infrastructure

Waymo cars near Universal Orlando caught breaking traffic laws. 0 3 minutes read A few years ago, the idea of a driverless car picking you up at a theme park resort sounded like something from a sci-fi movie. Today, it's part of the real Orlando transportation scene. And as more visitors and locals encounter these vehicles, every viral moment gets a closer look. The latest one involves a Waymo that appears to have entered an intersection on a red light near Universal Orlando Resort. My latest videos. No collisions were reported, but the video has fueled a debate about how autonomous vehicles handle busy tourist roads. Here's what the clip shows, what Waymo has said about its Orlando plans, and what visitors planning a Disney trip should know. The clip that started the conversation. A Threads user named @melisaunfiltered shared the video on Sunday, October 4, saying it was filmed at the intersection of Kirkman Road and Carrier Drive. The footage shows a Waymo van creeping forward into the intersection while the signal is red. By the time the light changes to green, the vehicle is about halfway across. No cars were hit. The poster didn't mince words in their caption. "@Waymo One of your cars ran a red light today at a major intersection near Universal Orlando," they wrote. "This is a serious safety concern." Keep in mind what Disney Fanatic actually know. This comes from a single user's video and caption. The information available doesn't include a statement from Waymo or an explanation for why the vehicle behaved as it did. A quick look at Waymo's Orlando rollout. Waymo vehicles arrived in Orlando earlier this year. The service is also active in other cities, including Dallas and Houston, and the company has ambitious goals. Co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said, "Waymo is serving more riders than ever, as we are on track to serve over one million rides per week by the end of this year." She continued, "Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando are critical to our plans, as we lay groundwork for service in 20+ cities. Each community has its own unique charm and transportation needs, and we're eager to provide a safe, reliable, and magical way for locals and visitors to travel." Waymo has also partnered with Lighthouse Central Florida, an organization that supports people with vision loss, to ensure its service works for a wide range of riders. Mapping the service area. According to Waymo's map of Orlando service, the coverage area includes Universal Orlando Resort, parts of Walt Disney World Resort, and Orlando International Airport. On paper, that makes it look like a potentially handy way to connect big destinations. For Disney visitors, though, there's an important detail. Public passenger rides don't currently serve the Walt Disney World theme parks or resorts. Waymo operates in parts of the Orlando tourist district and downtown, and test vehicles have been seen mapping and operating near Disney areas. But full commercial service for riders hasn't launched at Walt Disney World. Why tourist corridors raise the stakes. Roads around major resorts are some of the busiest in Central Florida. Rental cars, shuttles, pedestrians, and drivers who don't know the area all share limited space. That makes any apparent traffic mistake feel more significant, even when nobody is hurt. One video doesn't reveal how a self-driving service performs across thousands of rides, and it doesn't show a trend. But it's a reminder that visitors are watching, and that questions about how automated vehicles behave in busy places are reasonable. Those questions apply to human drivers too, since busy intersections near resorts challenge everyone who uses them. Getting around on a Disney vacation. If a Walt Disney World trip is on your calendar, don't plan on taking a Waymo into the theme parks or to your resort for now. Public rides don't serve those locations. Disney's buses, boats, monorails, and Skyliner, plus rideshare, rental cars, and taxis, are your reliable choices, and they're worth mapping out before you arrive. Splitting your time between Disney and Universal? Check Waymo's service area in its app before you count on it, since coverage can change. Whatever transportation you choose, stay alert at crosswalks. Wait for the signal, look both ways, and never assume a vehicle will stop, whether a person or software is in control. If a ride ever makes you uneasy, you can contact the service or end the trip when it's safe. Would you ride in a self-driving car on your next Orlando vacation? Tell Disney Fanatic in the comments, and share any experiences you've had getting around the tourist areas. Orlando theme park lover who loves thrills and theming, with a side of entertainment. You can often catch me at Disney or Universal sipping a cocktail, or crying during Happily Ever After or Fantasmic.

Survey says U.S. drivers not ready to give up vehicle control to autonomy. Cox Automotive says Americans are becoming more comfortable with and knowledgeable about autonomous vehicle technology, but aren't ready to give up control of their vehicles, according to its new survey results. The company began studying AV technology 10 years ago. It says consumer familiarity with AVs has increased 18% since then, while 46% of U.S. consumers believe vehicles will become fully autonomous at some point during their lifetime. Five years ago, 37% believed that. "The most appealing level of autonomy continues to be Level 4 (full autonomy capability, with the option for a human to drive), selected by 28% of respondents, down from 30% a decade ago," the survey report states. "Meanwhile, interest in fully driverless Level 5 vehicles declined notably from 17% in 2016 to 10% in 2026, suggesting that consumers have become less interested in permanently giving up control of the driving experience." Since 2016, ownership of Level 2 and Level 3 vehicles increased from 12% to 34%. Fifty-seven percent of survey respondents said they would choose a Level 3 or higher vehicle for their next purchase if all autonomy levels were available. "The auto industry has always had longer adoption curves for new technologies," said Vanessa Ton, Cox Automotive's market and customer research senior manager, in the report. "Even hybrid vehicles, which have been available to U.S. consumers for more than 25 years, account for only about 1 in 5 new vehicle sales today. For autonomous vehicles, safety concerns and high-profile incidents have slowed progress, but the growing acceptance of robotaxis seen in this year's study indicates that attitudes are clearly evolving." This year, respondents said they're often more willing to embrace Level 5 autonomy when they don't have to buy the vehicle themselves, according to the report. "Awareness of robotaxis has reached 70% nationally and 89% among residents of cities where autonomous services operate, although actual usage remains far lower at 18% nationally and 33% among AV-city residents," the report states. "Research shows that 55% of Americans are open to using robotaxis, suggesting adoption is more constrained by availability than by interest." The report lists AV cities as Atlanta, Georgia; Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada; Los Angeles and San Francisco, California; Miami and Orlando, Florida; and Phoenix, Arizona. Eighty-three percent of respondents said riding in a robotaxi improved their perception of AVs. The same percentage said they would hail a robotaxi again. However, 61% of respondents who hadn't ridden in a robotaxi still cited discomfort with having no human driver as the primary reason they didn't want to ride in one. According to the survey, proven performance, safety, and technology; financial incentives; ease of adoption; and recommendations and peer influence pull buyers in when it comes to AVs. Respondents' most-liked features include safety and accident prevention, being able to drive yourself when you want (Levels 3 and 4 autonomy), faster commutes, lower insurance, and benefits for impaired and at-risk drivers. Thirty-nine percent of ride-hail users said they're very comfortable riding in AVs compared to riding in a vehicle driven by someone they don't know. Forty-four percent said they're somewhat comfortable comparatively. Cox Automotive predicts that in two to five years, ride-hailing will be revolutionized because "the incumbents' core asset, the human driver, is the very thing consumers are moving away from." The report notes that Waymo, a robotaxi operator, claims to provide 2 million rides per month in the U.S. In September, Waymo launched in Denver, Colorado; San Diego, California, and Tampa, Florida, expanding its reach to 14 cities. Its website shows it is already working to expand to 17 more cities. The more control AVs take, the further safety confidence falls, according to Cox Automotive. For example, 87% said they feel safe traveling in Level 1 autonomy vehicles. By Level 5 autonomy, that percentage drops to 38%. The results are nearly 50/50 on whether humans or AVs make roads safer. Forty-nine percent of respondents said roads would be safer if all vehicles were autonomous. Fifty-one percent said roads would be safer if only people operated vehicles. The survey also found that respondents believe AVs are better suited for parking, road trips, new cities, and traffic. Images. Featured image: Interior of a Waymo autonomous Jaguar I-PACE robotaxi. (Credit: halbergman/iStock)

Workers' Party MPs raise questions about how autonomous ride-hailing services will affect taxi, PHV drivers in Singapore. 1 hour ago 76 Screengrab/ Waymo, The Workers' Party Facebook page SINGAPORE: This week in Parliament, two Workers' Party Members of Parliament (WP MPs) will be raising questions regarding autonomous cars, including how Singapore's taxi and private hire vehicle drivers will be affected. It was reported last month that in 2028, the autonomous driving firm Waymo will launch a fully driverless ride-hailing service in Singapore, after the company announced a partnership with the Ministry of Transport and Land Transport Authority concerning an all-electric commercial fleet. It will be the first such service in Southeast Asia. WP MPs Louis Chua and Jamus Lim (Sengkang) will ask questions regarding regulations on autonomous vehicles, specifically whether they will be different from current ride-hailing regulations. More relevant to the over 70,000 taxi and private-hire car drivers operating in Singapore, the MP's will ask questions regarding the potential impact on their livelihoods. After the LTA said on Sept 18 that it will not allow autonomous vehicle deployment to run ahead of Singapore's ability to retrain and support affected drivers, the WP MPs are asking what specific indicators, including driver earnings, will be monitored, as well as what changes could trigger a slowdown of deployment. What the government has said In July, Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow had issued the assurance that driver jobs won't "vanish any time soon." He acknowledged that cabbies' and PHV drivers' concerns as autonomous vehicle technology has developed, but said that at present, only about 20 such vehicles are operating in Singapore, mostly in the Punggol area. He * Homepage * Independent Media * Workers' Party MPs raise questions about how autonomous ride-hailing services will affect taxi, PHV drivers in Singapore.