Robotaxis will begin cruising the streets of Los Angeles on Thursday when Google spinoff Waymo starts offering free rides to some of the roughly 50,000 people who have signed up for its driverless ride-hailing service.

Waymo is expanding into Los Angeles, the second largest U.S. city, seven months after California regulators authorized its robotaxis to begin charging for around-the-clock rides throughout San Francisco. That came despite objections from local officials who asserted the driverless vehicles posed unacceptable risks to public safety.

Although Waymo isn't charging for rides in its robotaxis in Los Angeles to start, the company said in a blog post announcing the expansion that it will eventually collect fares from passengers there too.

KTLA's Sara Welch reports on March 14, 2024.

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