Waymo heads to Toronto, its first city in Canada

Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving unit, is coming to Canada. The company announced on Friday that it is laying the groundwork for a fully autonomous ride-hailing service in Toronto, with the goal of welcoming its first riders in 2028. According to TechCrunch, the move follows approval for Waymo to take part in Ontario’s automated vehicle pilot programme.

The usual step-by-step rollout

Don’t expect to hail a driverless car in Toronto just yet. Waymo is following the same playbook it uses in every new city:

• Manual mapping first. In the coming days, Waymo vehicles will drive Toronto’s streets with a human at the wheel to build high-definition maps.
• Supervised testing next. The cars will then drive autonomously with trained specialists behind the wheel, so the Waymo Driver can adapt to local conditions.
• Public rides last. Only after that validation period will Waymo open the service to riders. People in Toronto can already sign up for updates.

Toronto is likely to be Waymo’s most wintry market so far, which will put the company’s claim of an “all-weather” driver to a real test.

Local partners and jobs

Waymo has picked Element Fleet Management, a company headquartered in Toronto, to provide end-to-end fleet management. Together with Element and other partners, Waymo says it will invest in hundreds of roles over time in fleet maintenance, validation driving, customer service and operations. It also points to existing Canadian ties, including investor Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and manufacturing partner Magna International.

The company is working with accessibility groups as well, including CNIB and BALANCE for Blind Adults.

A fast-growing footprint

“Expanding into Canada marks an important milestone in Waymo’s global journey,” said co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana. TechCrunch notes that Waymo now runs robotaxi services in 15 US cities and is testing in London and Tokyo. Waymo also cites data from more than 400 million fully autonomous kilometres showing 95% fewer serious-injury crashes than human drivers in the cities where it operates, a figure from its own analysis.

For more on how carmakers are approaching autonomy, see our story on Volvo’s automated driving deal with Nvidia, or read our home EV charger guide if you drive electric yourself.