Self-driving taxis could be on the streets of London from next year, according to autonomous taxi firm Waymo.
The taxis have become a regular feature on San Francisco’s roads and recently launched in Tokyo.
London, often associated with the famous black cab, will be the first European city to get the driverless taxis.
However, Steve McNamara, general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association which represents cab drivers in London, is not worried.
“Will I be concerned in 25 years’ time? Maybe. I’m certainly not concerned at the moment,” he told Sky News.
“It’s a novelty, it is a gimmick. It is the solution that we don’t need. Who needs a driverless cab?” asked Mr McNamara.
He added he didn’t think Londoners would trust the taxis, let alone “put their kids in one to go to school”.
In response, Waymo told Sky News it “provides hundreds of thousands of rides every week in the US, and shared in May of this year that we’ve provided over 10,000,000 fully autonomous rides to the public”.
“That growth reflects real appreciation, love, and trust in the service among our growing number of riders where we operate,” said a Waymo spokesperson.
“We’re excited to introduce the reliability, safety, and magic of Waymo to Londoners soon.”
Waymo said its autonomous cars are on their way to London and will be on the capital’s roads “in the coming weeks”, albeit with “safety drivers” behind the wheel.
The company is working with both the Department for Transport and Transport for London to “secure the necessary permissions to offer fully autonomous rides in 2026”.
Those permissions are contingent on the government finalising driverless car regulations and giving Waymo the go-ahead to operate.
Uber and UK company Wayve are also planning to trial driverless taxis in the…
