(Reuters) – Alphabet’s Waymo (NASDAQ:) said on Tuesday its autonomous ride-hailing service Waymo One is now available to everyone in San Francisco, nearly four years after a similar move in Phoenix, Arizona.
Self-driving cars are expected to bring commercial success to automakers, even as regulatory scrutiny remains tight amid investor concerns about growing investment in the nascent technology.
Waymo launched a test service as part of its research program in San Francisco in 2021, which included an autonomous attendant for all rides at that time as the company sought to commercialize the technology.
The company said about 300,000 people have signed up to ride with Waymo since it first opened its waitlist in the city, indicating strong demand. Now that access is open, anyone can order a ride in the application.
In 2020, the company opened up walk-in access to everyone in Phoenix, Arizona.
Waymo, headquartered in Mountain View, California, is a pioneer in self-driving technology. It launched its first self-driving taxi service in the US in 2020, more than a decade after it was born in 2009 as a project within Google.
In March, the company received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to launch Waymo One in Los Angeles and select cities near San Francisco.
Rivals including General Motors-backed Cruise and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:)-owned Zoox are accelerating the race to success amid auto regulator investigations into the performance of self-driving cars.
Last month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it had become aware of nine additional incidents raising concerns about the operation of Waymo’s self-driving cars.