On February 24th, Waymo announced that it was expanding its fully autonomous ride-hailing service to Orlando, Florida and three other U.S. cities. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, who was the first to take an official ride, said that the city had been working with Waymo for several months.
“The launch of their commercial service in Orlando is another example of our city’s forward thinking and commitment to innovation,” Dyer said. “Starting today, our residents will have another option to safely move about the area, and our visitors will be welcomed with the world class mobility they deserve.”
The entrance to Universal Studios in Orlando Florida – Photo Credit: Marvin Montanaro
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Waymo notes that this is the first time they have opened in multiple cities simultaneously. In addition to Orlando, the company expanded its offerings in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio.
Inside Waymo’s Orlando Rollout
The Waymo vehicles servicing Orlando are electric Jaguars which use cameras, lidar (laser radar that builds a 3D map around the car) and traditional radar. Service coverage includes Universal Orlando Resort, parts of Walt Disney World Resort, and Orlando International Airport. Fox 35 Orlando reported that Dyer described his first ride in a Waymo vehicle as smooth and expressed his confidence in its safety.
Waymo service map for Orlando – Waymo
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Waymo is owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, and reports that it provided 15 million driverless rides in 2025 and currently provides about 400,000 per week. Tekedra Mawakana, co-CEO of Waymo, said that the company is “on track to serve over one million rides per week by the end of this year.”
She added, “Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando are critical to our plans, as we lay groundwork for service in 20+ cities. Each community has its own unique charm and transportation needs, and we’re eager to provide a safe, reliable, and magical way for locals and visitors to travel.”
According to company data collected from over 127 million miles traveled, there is a 10-fold reduction in serious injury or worse crashes and 12-fold reduction in injury crashes with pedestrians compared to human drivers. For Orlando, joining that network places the city among a small but growing group of autonomous testbeds.
Why Orlando Is a Key Test Market
Despite advancements in technology and the growing service area, many Americans remain cautious about driverless vehicles. AAA’s 2025 autonomous vehicle survey showed that 6 in 10 U.S. drivers reported being afraid to ride in a self-driving vehicle. However, it noted that confidence was slightly up compared to previous years.
That dynamic may be particularly relevant in Orlando, where heavy tourism traffic and clearly defined travel corridors make it an appealing testing ground for autonomous vehicles. Large volumes of airport-to-resort trips provide predictable routes that can help refine operations in high-demand environments, while also increasing exposure to the new technology.
The 5th-generation Waymo Driver on the all-electric Jaguar I-PACE – Waymo
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It remains unclear how Orlando residents will respond compared to national trends. Access to Waymo rides in Orlando and other new cities is currently invitation-only to those who have installed the app. Responses online have been generally positive, with many users celebrating the expansion as a milestone for the company.
A Public Trust Test
As Waymo begins operating in Orlando, the expansion marks both a technological milestone and a public trust experiment. Company data points to improved safety, but surveys show hesitation remains. For a city built on movement, the coming months may reveal not just how the technology performs, but how quickly the public is willing to embrace autonomous transportation.
What do you think of driverless cars? Would you use one in Orlando? Let us know in the comments!
Homosexuals want to start their own service – Gaymo.
Shouldn’t our leaders work hard trying to create new jobs BEFORE such simple jobs as driving people become obsolete?
Uber driving is one of those jobs that people in a dire need of cash can use to survive till they get a better one or finish studying.
What is going to happen when millions of healthy men and women literally have nowhere to turn? And more importantly, how can our budget afford quadruple of unemployed relying on the system?