The Mountain View company expands its foothold in the South Bay
Waymo is launching its robotaxi service at Mineta San José International Airport (SJC) after receiving official authorization from airport authorities. This move marks the company’s first major step into the South Bay region.
The Mountain View-based company, which was spun off from Google in 2017, announced it will begin testing at the airport this fall, with plans to start carrying paying passengers by the end of the year.
San José City Manager Jennifer Maguire described the upcoming driverless service as “an innovative new option for how passengers travel to and from Mineta San José International Airport.”
According to the airport’s announcement, Waymo’s vehicles will be permitted to pick up passengers from either Terminal A or B. However, all drop-offs must be within the company’s current Bay Area service zone. This designated area includes most of the Peninsula from Burlingame northward and the entire city of San Francisco.
This expansion follows the state’s approval granted to Waymo in May to operate throughout most of the South Bay, including large parts of San José. The company had not specified a timeline or initial launch points for the region at that time.
The rollout of this pioneering technology in the Bay Area has faced significant headwinds. Initially, some local leaders expressed frustration over their lack of authority to regulate the vehicles’ operations. San Francisco officials were particularly vehement in their opposition to Waymo and GM’s now-defunct Cruise robotaxis, after their vehicles repeatedly blocked traffic and interfered with emergency responders—incidents for which Cruise was primarily blamed.
Since then, Waymo has worked to build support, notably from San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, and has successfully expanded its service to cover the entire peninsula. The company is also working to launch a similar service at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
However, challenges in integrating autonomous vehicles into complex urban environments persist. As recently as last month, an incident was reported where a driverless Waymo vehicle was stopped by a flagger on a narrow, two-lane section of O’Shaughnessy Boulevard in San Francisco. According to a witness, the robotaxi attempted to maneuver around the flagger into oncoming traffic, prompting the worker to block its path three times. The flagger was overheard stating, “I hate these things,” highlighting the ongoing public and operational hurdles the technology faces.