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The US-based company Waymo has declared that its self-driving taxis will be on offer for booking on London's streets beginning next year.

UK Capital Named as First European City for Autonomous Cab Service.

London will emerge as the pioneering European city to host an self-driving taxi service, similar to those already in use in multiple US cities and four other American locations utilizing Waymo's advanced technology.

Initial Trials to Start with Safety Drivers.

Waymo confirmed that its fleet are now en route to London and will start operating on the city's streets in the near future with trained human specialists supervising the vehicles.

Waymo – originally established as a derivative from the tech giant's self-driving car program and part of the Alphabet family – indicated it would scale up activities and partner with the government transport body and Transport for London to secure the necessary approvals to provide completely driverless services by 2026.

Expanding Involvement in Self-Driving Transport In London.

Further firms, such as Uber and the UK-based tech company Wayve, have also announced their own intentions to trial autonomous taxis in the capital next year.

This is in response to the UK authorities confirming it would accelerate guidelines enabling real-world tests to occur before laws enabling self-driving vehicles passes in full.

“It is exciting that Waymo plans to bring their services to London next year, under our planned testing initiative,” commented the government minister, Heidi Alexander.

“Supporting the autonomous vehicle industry will enhance accessible transport options in addition to creating employment, funding, and possibilities to the UK. Cutting-edge investment like this will help us deliver our objective to be global pioneers in emerging tech and drive countrywide development.”

Complete Introduction Expected After New Legislation Is Enforced.

A fuller introduction of autonomous vehicles is projected in the UK after the Automated Vehicles Act comes completely into force in late 2027.

Waymo's Established Presence in the United Kingdom and Beyond.

Waymo currently has links to Britain after launching its pioneering European engineering hub in Oxford in 2019.

It is additionally launching offerings in Tokyo using Jaguar Land Rover electric vehicles, marking its only other existing operation outside the United States.

“Evidence confirms how to safely expand completely driverless taxi services, and we can’t wait to bring the benefits of our platform to the United Kingdom,” stated the company executive, explaining that the technology was “improving road safety and transportation more available”.

Established History in the US.

Waymo introduced its autonomous vehicles in 2020 and presently claims it has served more than ten million riders in the United States.

Despite some troubling events, Waymo asserted that evidence demonstrated that cars controlled by people were associated with incidents that hurt walkers at a much higher rate than its driverless fleet.