SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) -- Some San Francisco residents will have a new way to get around the city.
Waymo has launched rider testing of its self-driving cars. Right now, residents can sign up to become a "trusted tester" in the Waymo One app.
Safety is the number one priority for Waymo.
"This is an important tool and technology that is going to make roads safer," Sam Kansara, senior product manager, said.
Waymo is hoping San Francisco will be the second market where they fully launch their self-driving cars.
This week, the company began the "Waymo One Trusted Tester Program".
"It allows select members of the public to use Waymo for their everyday mobility needs and give us feedback along the way," Kansara said.
You can apply to join the program in the Waymo One app.
If accepted, you will get to hop into one of the electric Jaguar I-Pace vehicles.
During the testing phase, there is an autonomous specialist in the vehicle -- but the person's hands are not on the steering wheel.
"The role of our autonomous specialist is to monitor our technology and be able to identify any areas that we need to improve as we continue developing in our tech," Kansara said.
But the car is completely driving itself.
Waymo's self-driving vehicles were first launched in phoenix. Now those vehicles are operating with no human driver.
"So what you're seeing on the rider screen is basically a simplified view of what all the sensors are seeing."
The vehicle is able to drive itself with a combination of hardware and software.
From the outside of the vehicle, you can see all of the technology, it's a combination of lidar, radar, and cameras to predict and analyze everything around the vehicle. The goal is to make it safer than a human driver.
"Unlike a human, it does not get distracted and it's able to see at 360 degrees at all times," Kansara said.
Right now the vehicles are only programmed to drive around the city of San Francisco.
There is no specific timeline for a full launch -- the testing phase is expected to take a few months.
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