Waymo Gets Approval to Expand Robotaxi Service Across California
The California Public Utilities Commission has approved Waymo's expansion plan, letting it offer rides in Sacramento and San Diego for the first time while growing its footprint in the Bay Area and Los Angeles.
Waymo says it has received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to expand its driverless robotaxi service into more counties across the state. The decision allows the company to begin offering rides in Sacramento and San Diego for the first time, while also expanding its existing service areas in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles.
According to Electrek, the CPUC's approval appears to respond to a letter Waymo filed in January seeking sign-off on a safety plan tied to the expanded service area it had announced back in November 2025. The CPUC's records show the company received feedback and even had its request temporarily suspended at one point, but Waymo's announcement suggests those issues have since been resolved, even though this hasn't yet been formally reflected in public records.
In a social media post, Waymo said the rollout would happen gradually and be guided by its internal safety framework.
The approval covers 18 counties spanning Northern and Southern California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, Yolo, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Ventura. Waymo is unlikely to deploy vehicles across all of these areas immediately.
The company first announced plans to expand into San Diego in November 2025 and into Sacramento in February 2026. In July, Waymo also revealed plans to soon test fully driverless rides without a safety operator in San Diego, Denver, Tampa, and Las Vegas.
Based on the original filing, the CPUC approval covers both Waymo's existing Jaguar I-Pace vehicles and its newer Ojai robotaxis, custom-built minivans manufactured by Chinese automaker Zeekr.
