US self-driving taxi company sets up business in France
Waymo claims its taxis are safer than cars driven by humans
Published
Self-driving car company Waymo, which runs autonomous taxis in the US, has registered a business “for the urban and suburban transport of passengers” in France.
Owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, it previously expressed an interest in expanding its taxis around the world, suggesting London would be the first European city to have a service.
Neither Waymo nor Google France responded to The Connexion’s requests for details.
Waymo claims its US taxis, based on a Jaguar electric car, are 10 times safer than those driven by humans.
Doubts over French driving conditions
There have been doubts about how the technology will cope with driving conditions in France, particularly in Paris.
The notorious roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe, where traffic gives way to cars joining it, is just one concern. Narrower streets to accommodate dedicated bus, taxi and cycle lanes could also be problematic.
In addition, Waymo will have to navigate Paris’s taxi and chauffeured car unions, which are known for staging disruptive, high-profile protests.
France has backed autonomous technology
The French government has made considerable efforts to support driverless technology.
Between 2010 and 2020, it introduced legislation and a regulatory framework governing autonomous vehicle fleets, and even went as far as proposing the construction of a mock town for companies to test.
Despite this, few French firms have made significant breakthroughs.
The most advanced – Toulouse-based EasyMile, which developed electric autonomous minibuses for use in controlled environments – ran into financial difficulties and was bought out by a Singapore-based business.
It now concentrates on autonomous utility vehicles.
Autonomous minibus tested in France
Chinese firm WeRide, in collaboration with beti, Renault Group and Macif, has been testing a public-road autonomous minibus service in Valence, Drôme, since last year.
Nearly 100 passengers per day travel on a 3.3km route connecting the railway station, a long-stay car park and a business park. The vehicles can be remotely monitored by human operators and are licensed to reach speeds of up to 40km/h.
Tesla denied authorisation for France
France turned down, for now, Tesla’s request for its self-driving system to be registered in France, although it has been authorised in The Netherlands.
In July the Transport minister, Philippe Tabarot published a video in response to a “citizen’s question” from “Ludovic.”
In it Mr Tabarot praises the technology but said France had concerns about safety.
The first, and most concerning was that the system proposed by Tesla for France allowed cars to break the speed limit by as much as 50%.
It is designed to adjust the speed of the car to that of surrounding traffic, so if surrounding traffic breaks the speed limit, it does too.
Mr Tabarot said tests showed Tesla cars driving at 70kph in 50kph zones, and in other cases the cars went 50% over the speed limit.
Another problem was the level of involvement required by drivers in urban environments.
Tesla recommends at least one hand on the wheel, but Mr Tabarot said France did not think this was sufficient for the negotiation of roundabouts, or changing lanes in busy urban traffic.
France sent a high-level transport engineer to The Netherlands in July to evaluate with Dutch officials and Tesla the introduction of the system there, so that necessary adjustments can be sorted out.
Mr Tabarot, said around 200 tests of self driving systems had been held in France since 2015, and he was confident the first self driving system would be allowed in 2027.
This reporter noted on one of France’s main holiday routes (the N10 and A10) that Tesla drivers have become much more aggressive and faster – taking the place which used to be given to some BMW drivers.
On the N10, which has a speed limit of 110kph, they frequently travelled at around 130 kph, and flashed their lights and tailgated other cars.
