“I didn’t think we were in the future until I looked out and saw ‘Waymos’,” said Gage Weingart, an undergraduate student at UCLA. It is no longer a surprise to see a white, driverless Jaguar, silently gliding through the streets of Westwood. In November 2024, a new self-driving ride-sharing service called Waymo One was introduced to the Los Angeles area. While these vehicles have brought excitement and amazement across campus, some students aren’t convinced these autonomous drivers are here to stay.
For many, the sense of security is a big appeal. Ava Medure, a third-year student majoring in political science, believes that the absence of human drivers makes Waymo One a safer alternative for women returning home at night. She reported having unsettling experiences in the past with other ride-sharing services, such as Uber and Lyft, because some drivers have made her feel uncomfortable. With Waymo One, she claimed, “There is no risk of a sketchy driver or having to make uncomfortable small talk; it is just a quiet, straightforward ride home.”
Other students have been shocked by the predictability of this service. Sophia Colavin, an undergraduate student who recently took her first ride in a Waymo, claimed she was quite skeptical on the reliability of these vehicles. “I thought it was going to get confused with all the traffic, and I’d end up at my destination later than I should, but it was actually way better than I expected.” She also liked that these rides tend to be cheaper than other ride-sharing competitors, and the fact that there is no need to tip, making this service practical for college students.
However, not everyone is convinced. Lydia May, another UCLA student, worries for the safety of Waymo users as well as other pedestrians. “In a college town, like Westwood, there are students constantly jay-walking, and drivers always have to be on alert and make sudden stops. It makes me anxious because what if the Waymo wasn’t able to react fast enough to sudden movement?” She believes a human driver is much more capable of anticipating unexpected events that a machine might not be able to.
May is not the only one with concerns. Colavin noted that she is worried about what this means for people who work as drivers for other ride-sharing companies and rely on that revenue. She said she has friends and family that drive for Uber or Lyft to help bring in money to support themselves through college or with familial expenses, and she is scared about the possibility of autonomous ride-sharing services taking that ability away from people who need it.
So, is autonomous ride-sharing the future? The addition of Waymo One to Los Angeles suggests that self-driving technology is becoming more present in our everyday lives. However, it is still uncertain whether people will embrace this long-term or if the desire for human drivers is here to stay. While many have seen this as an exciting new innovation, lots of students don’t think these companies will be able to truly replace human drivers.
In the meantime, Waymo One provides a mirror into the future where autonomous technology is the new normal. Whether that future is already here or is still a few decades away is a question up for debate.
A Waymo autonomous vehicle drives through the Westwood-Weyburn intersection in Westwood Village. Introduced to the Los Angeles public in November 2024, the self-driving cars have become an item on many students' to-try lists. Photographed by Julia Gu/BruinLife.
