Climbing into the passenger’s seat of a driverless Waymo reminded me of riding with my 16-year-old. I was relinquishing control to a new driver, but one who I believed had the skills to get me where I wanted to go.
After some bumps in the road, my teen with a learner’s permit declared that she’s a better driver than Waymo.
In my opinion, the best-driver title remains up for grabs. My teen and Waymo are both pretty good at navigating neighborhood streets, but each could stand to work out a few kinks.
My three children and I took two Waymo trips shortly after I received my welcome email on April 1.
First, we traveled from our home in University Park to Half Price Books on Northwest Highway. Then, we went from Half Price Books to enjoy a treat at Van Leeuwen Ice Cream in Inwood Village.
Here are my takeaways from both trips:
Waymo is more expensive than Uber and Lyft but riding in one of the driverless vehicles has other pay offs.
The trip to Half Price Books in Waymo cost $19.20, as opposed to $11.62 in Lyft and $13.96 in Uber. Traveling from the bookstore to the ice cream shop was $22.63 in Waymo. I would have paid $11.69 in Lyft, and $16.94 in Uber.
Both Lyft and Uber also advertised faster arrival times than Waymo.
However, I didn’t need to tip my Waymo. There was also no need to make small talk with my immaculate self-driving vehicle. The temperature was comfortable, the ride was smooth, and Waymo played relaxing music the entire trip.
Waymo obeyed all traffic signals and pulled over for an emergency vehicle on Northwest Highway. We were all impressed when Waymo managed to navigate a fallen branch on Villanova Street.
But Waymo struggled with the Park Cities etiquette of how best to squeeze through narrow neighborhood streets.
On the way down Hanover Street, Waymo passed several spots where it could have pulled over before stopping in front of an oncoming Audi and turning on its windshield wipers.
Was Waymo perhaps signaling to the Audi? If it was, the other driver got the message. She reversed to let our Waymo by.
Waymo seemed intimidated by changing lanes on Northwest Highway. Although it turned on its signal for the first time before crossing Hillcrest Avenue, Waymo didn’t manage to get into the left-hand lane until after we had passed Half Price Books.
We were not optimistic when Waymo attempted to make a U-turn across from REI. Although there were several large gaps in oncoming traffic, Waymo delayed turning until cars stopped at a light and left space for it.
We noticed that an SUV was turning right out of REI, but Waymo apparently did not. The driverless vehicle diverted mid-turn to take us on a scenic tour of the REI parking lot.
My children suggested that we get out and walk, but I retained confidence in Waymo. The vehicle then managed to turn right onto Northwest Highway and drove a block to the bookstore.
My three kids said they were “Waymoed out” after our second trip, but I have high hopes for driverless technology.
Waymo needs some more drivers ed on how to maneuver through narrow roads and become more aggressive. None of the other drivers want to hit it, either.
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