Waymo To Start Autonomous Car Testing In Its Most Difficult Location Yet

A new autonomous vehicle competitor is coming to New York City, one of the most difficult self-driving scenarios in the U.S.

What Happened: Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL)GOOG will begin testing in NYC, as shared by The Verge, to improve its coverage map of cities that have the driverless taxi service.

To start out, the Waymo vehicles will not be autonomous. There will be two employees in the car, driving it around to map out the streets. Waymo uses a large array of data to get its autonomous vehicles going without a human in the driver's seat. One of the most important aspects is the High Definition Map. Waymo maps an area in fine detail, so the car knows what to expect at every turn, including potholes, speed bumps and other hazards and driving challenges.

Waymo won’t have more than five vehicles driving at a time in the beginning. They will be driving in Manhattan, primarily south of Central Park.

New York hasn't seen many autonomous vehicles, partly due to its strict rules. Safety drivers keep their hands on the wheel at all times and autonomous vehicles require a State Police escort at all times, which needs to be paid for by the testing company.

Photo: Courtesy of Waymo