It was a late Saturday night and I was tired. My friends and I walked out to the street to further discuss how we were getting home. We eventually settled in a Lyft. My friend opened her phone to request one, a routine action to most. I asked how much I owed her, she said three dollars. I sent it over without a second thought. My friend asked if I was okay with a driverless car. I said yes before I was truly able to contemplate my answer, eager to get to our destination. There was no backing out, and before long a Waymo pulled in front of us.
A Waymo is a self-driving vehicle that has been popping up in major cities around the country. Alphabet Inc. first launched the vehicles in Phoenix and have now expanded to San Francisco, Austin and recently Atlanta.
The vehicle picked up my friends on a quiet street in Home Park. It stood out amongst the simple cars and sedans lining the street. In all honesty, it was truly an eyesore with its bright white exterior and unignorable cameras and sensors.
The ambient audio attempts to transport users to the future, a time away from stress and worry. I was neither fooled nor convinced. No amount of calming nondescript noises could deter my fear. Reluctant does not begin to properly describe the extent of my feelings at the moment; however, neither does enraptured. The best comparison is one of seeing an alien; I was equally terrified and infatuated. I wanted to know more but feared knowing more would not end well.
The entirety of the ride I felt like a woman with one foot in the grave. I tried to distract myself instead of encouraging my fears. Once passengers enter the vehicle, Waymos cut off the ambient vibes and allows riders to customize their experience through one of Waymo’s curated playlists. My friends scrolled through some options eventually settling on rave. With one click in the dashboard my entire experience changed. The ride went from ambient to animated. The bright colors from the dashboard filled the vehicle, and I was filled with a new energy. For about 10minutes, I almost forgot about the fact that the car had no driver.
Drivers are the core of transportation. During my lifetime, Atlanta has never had a true cab culture. Even before the introduction of ride-sharing, the bright yellow vehicles never populated Atlanta in the same manner they did in other major cities. As an Atlanta native, I will feel forever jealous of the people who experience cab culture. There is something truly special about having a reliable network of people who know their way around a city, who you can get recommendations from or just simply talk to on your way somewhere. Drivers make the experience better. Whether by a quick ride to a hotel in a new city or a late night ride back home, that small moment of human interaction riders have with drivers is impactful. Taking away the human aspect changes the ride fundamentally. Though fun, it would have been better if I had requested a driver to play EDM for my friends and I.
Along with having the experience of riding in a Waymo, I also have the privilege of sharing the roads with them as a driver on the Atlanta streets. To be frank, I find the vehicles suspicious. As a driver, their presence is looming. Waymos only add to the anxiety I feel navigating the roads and other drivers in the city. Recently, when I was stopped at a light, one crept up to rest behind me. For the minute I was stopped, its presence felt overbearing; similar to that of the predator stalking its prey.
My distaste for the technology is not entirely unselfish. A much less altruistic reason for my belief is my belief in privacy. Waymos must be in a mode of constant surveillance of their surroundings in order to operate properly —constant surveillance of street signs, lights, lanes, pedestrians and other drivers. When you’re in the presence of a Waymo, it knows you’re there. It has too much awareness.
During my time inside the Waymo, I performed. I performed outward excitement to mask my inner nerves. The performance didn’t last long, only a quick 10 minutes until my friends and I reached our destination. In the end I lived to tell the tale and exited the vehicle with all of the limbs I entered it with.