Waymo shared a photo of one of its self-driving Jaguar I-Pace cars as it drives past the iconic Abbey Road zebra crossing, with human safety drivers currently behind the wheel during testing
Driverless cars have been seen for the first time on London streets as part of trials ahead of them being used to pick up passengers in 2026 for ride-hailing. Waymo, which operates under Google’s parent firm Alphabet Inc, posted an image on social media showing one of its self-driving Jaguar I-Pace cars passing the famous Abbey Road zebra crossing.
The post declared: “The Waymo Driver has landed in London! We’re now driving in London as we prepare to bring the safety, reliability and magic of our autonomous ride-hail service to the city next year.”
According to the company, its technology, known as the ‘Waymo Driver’, “never gets drunk, tired, or distracted.” The vehicles employ a mix of cameras, radar sensors, and lidar sensors – a 3D scanning system – within its autonomous fleet.
This enables the cars to detect overlapping fields of vision in every direction up to 500 metres away, the company claims. When fully operational, the vehicles operate without any human safety driver whatsoever. At present, human ‘safety drivers’ remain at the wheel whilst the cars undergo testing in the British capital.
Waymo has used driverless private hire vehicles in the USA since 2020 with more than 10 million paid rides being completed in five US cities, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, alongside Silicon Valley. It says its cars will “navigate London’s unique streets, understand complex layouts and traffic patterns”.
Waymo has announced that it will be conducting testing, mapping, and ‘safety validation work’ in a host of London boroughs including Barking and Dagenham, Brent, Camden, Ealing, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham, Newham, Redbridge, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Westminster and the City of London.
The autonomous vehicles, originally designed for the company’s US operations, feature left-hand side steering wheels to accommodate right-side driving. Just last week, the Department for Transport initiated a call for evidence to establish a regulatory framework for self-driving technology.
This follows the passing of a law last year which permits these vehicles on British roads. Government projections suggest that by 2035, the self-driving vehicle sector could generate up to £42 billion for the UK economy and create around 38,000 jobs.
The announcement follows on from Uber confirming it will launch self-driving taxis in London from spring 2026. The ride-hailing app company will operate services in partnership with artificial intelligence (AI) start-up Wayve.
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