Sacramento Waymo rollout expected next month as city prepares for driverless vehicles

The Waymo wait is almost over in Sacramento.

City leaders expect the autonomous ride-hailing service to open to the public starting next month.

The expected rollout comes amid new attention on federal oversight of autonomous vehicles and how first responders navigate around them during emergencies.

Viral videos have shown driverless vehicles causing problems in San Francisco, including interfering with firefighters responding to emergency calls and contributing to gridlock on the Fourth of July.

In Sacramento, City Councilmember Phil Pluckebaum said Waymo's rollout is likely just a month away.

"They've got this down, they've done this before, they know these roads," Pluckebaum said.

As Sacramento prepares for the driverless vehicles, new federal legislation could impose additional requirements on autonomous vehicle companies, including digital boundaries designed to prevent vehicles from blocking first responders during emergencies.

"I think everything is on the table, things like that that can set a parameter around where Waymo is able to operate," Pluckebaum said.

A Waymo spokesperson said in a statement, in part, "Establishing minimum guidelines would provide the entire industry and public safety community with a consistent framework…"

Sacramento Fire Department Capt. Justin Sylvia said the department has a battalion chief working with a group that includes Waymo as the city prepares for the rollout.

"We just don't want to see the interference that we've seen in other cities with these autonomous vehicles," Sylvia said. "We don't want our access points to get blocked by these vehicles, nor our hydrants."

A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found Waymo driverless vehicles were involved in 81% fewer injury-causing crashes than human drivers.

Sacramento city leaders are also discussing allowing emergency vehicles to use newly added bike lanes to get around traffic.

"And emergency vehicles are able to proceed through that lane safely, quickly, if there's a traffic jam in the regular vehicular lanes," Pluckebaum said.

With Waymo's rollout approaching, Sacramento drivers could soon be sharing the road with more driverless vehicles.