Some people fear a future dominated by technology. Others embrace it. Austin is already living it.
Major U.S. cities, including Austin, Chicago, and Los Angeles, have seen a boom of self-driving vehicles. Self-driving cars have spread rapidly across the country. Many of these vehicles are Waymo cars, a fully automated car that takes passengers to their destinations through its partnership with Uber. Newer robotaxis have hit the streets of Austin more recently. Zoox, made by Amazon, is an autonomous electric van, with a spacious cabin and comfort for its passengers.
Austin has been a hub for these self-driving cars, first as a test site, but now also as a center of commercial activity. Over the last decade, thanks to Austin’s tech-friendly vibe and a 2017 Texas law that blocks local governments from regulating AVs, the city has drawn in companies looking to roll out their driverless vehicles. The boom of these cars began in 2023 and have only been increasing. Yulia Shveyko, a spokesperson at the automation A.I. company Avride behind the smaller delivery robots operating downtown, explained why Austin continues to be a hub for AVs.
“For the development of autonomous vehicles, one of the most important things is regulation in the area,” Shveyko said. “First of all, autonomous vehicles on the streets and public roads are not allowed all across the country. They’re only allowed in certain states, and each state has its own procedures, how the vehicles help to pay permits, et cetera … Texas has, I would say, a pretty favorable regulation for autonomous vehicles.”
Texas Senate Bill 2205, passed in 2017, authorized the operation of AVs in cities across the state as long as they have insurance and follow traffic rules. The bill allowed for the expansion of self-driving cars around the state, and engrained regulations to the new technology.
“If you want to develop your company in Austin, you need to be hiring engineering talents, and Austin is great about that, because here we have the University of Texas,” Shveyko said. “Austin is attracting tech talents and this is a great opportunity for the companies developing autonomous vehicles to hire the brightest minds and work with them on this amazing technology. Austin is also great in terms of testing because it features pretty much all types of environments and scenarios. You have vibrant downtown with a more urban-style environment, you have neighborhoods, you have highways, you have hilly areas with lots of inclines.”
Kate Harrington is a spokesperson at Movability Austin, a company that encourages affordable mobility solutions that reduce congestion, improve safety, and protect air quality to sustain the economic vitality of our region. Harrington suggested that its culture also made Austin a favorable location to introduce the industry to the public.
“I would say it’s probably a combination of the regulations and people here being open to trying things like that, trying new technology, and there’s opportunity, too,” Harrington said. “Because it’s a big city. It’s growing fast.”
The autonomous cars learning and serving in Austin, which include Tesla’s robotaxis, Zoox, and Waymo, aim to do the same job but differ in the technology they employ. Brad Cesak, a public information specialist for Austin Transportation and Public Works, indicated that lenient regulations give companies the opportunity to develop diverging systems.
“Self-driving cars can use various technologies to navigate the right of way,” Cesak said. “Some use software and multiple types of sensors on the vehicle — cameras, radar, lidar — while others use a trained AI model. Some are camera-only. Some do extensive mapping and testing on the streets while others rely more on simulations.”
However, some residents may not like the new, emerging technology for various reasons. First responders observed that some AVs are blocking their path for emergency operations. Because AVs follow the law closely, they are frequently unable to act outside of their programming in extraordinary circumstances.
“Some first responders have also noted they are frustrated by having to deal with AVs blocking emergency scenes,” Cesak said. “Members of the City’s Autonomous Vehicle Safety Working Group recently met with members of Austin City Council to discuss incidents between first responders and autonomous vehicles during emergency responses.”