PHX x Waymo: The Future of Airport Travel
The future of travel really is already here. Have you heard of Waymo? It’s an autonomous ride hailing service that currently operates in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix, and its mission is to “be the world’s most trusted driver.”
While visiting some friends and colleagues in Phoenix, AZ, I took the plunge and ordered a Waymo.
I call it a plunge, but there was a lot of looking and watching before ordering one for myself. In fact, it took three “formative” moments for me to decide I was actually going to get in a self-driving car.
1.The First Look: It was my first evening in Phoenix when a friend said he was going to order a car back to his apartment. A few of us waited outside and a white Jaguar drove up to the circle entryway where we were standing. It stopped about 30 feet away and quietly waited with its passenger’s initials projected on its screen, similar to how a car service might pick up an arriving business passenger.
Okay, it wasn’t as elegant as a personal driver waiting for you to swing through the “no re-entry doors” at the airport. It was more like a Lyft with a custom color to know yours is pulling up.
I was fascinated.
This person got into a car with no one else in it. As casually as ever, he said bye, opened the door, and made his way down the road.
2. In The Wild: During this visit, we took a two-hour road trip north to the red rocks of Sedona. Now Sedona certainly has more than its fair share of unique attractions. The only non-golden Golden Arch McDonald (it’s turquoise!). Spiritual enrichment sites. Festivals and shopping.
And on the way back, there was a Waymo. Driving right next to us on I-17. “Oh, they’re doing Waymo mapping up here,” my friend said matter-of-factly as she navigated alongside this autonomous machine.
There was something comforting about seeing Waymo taking stock of the environment before opening rides willy-nilly.
And, to me, Waymo was now the universal “cow!”
3. Offer Accepted: The selling point for me, the moment when I knew I had to try Waymo, was when my friends were looking at condos in the Phoenix area. Apparently, one qualifying question nowadays when it comes to house hunting is “do you want to be in the Waymo Zone?”
The Waymo Zone? This is a filter for searching for a place to live?!
Well, it’s not an official filter like on Zillow, but it’s a known geographical area that people use when drawing how far they might want to go from the city center.
If being in the Waymo Zone is how we determine our next place to live, I’ll go ahead and try what you’re selling!
By the last day of the trip, I knew I had to get myself in the Waymo Zone, even if it was to take a “trip to nowhere.” But on that last day I decided to up the ante. What if I took a Waymo back to the airport?
So I did.
My trip was 5.3 miles and took 18 minutes. It was $17 which included $1.50 for the Sky Harbor Airport Tax. No tip. This was at 1pm, and for reference, an Uber Comfort at that time would have also been $17, plus tip.
It really is as simple as the tap of a button. The Waymo app is available for both iPhone and Android, and the interface is comparable to Uber or Lyft. Type in where you’re going, confirm your pick up location, see your estimated time of arrival, and the cost.
The signature white Jaguar pulled up as expected. The doors unlocked, and through the app I was able to pop the truck to load my suitcase. I could also set the temperature and the music.
When the doors locked to start the trip, a recorded voice reminded passengers to please not touch the steering wheel. This, I thought, was both existential and comforting. It was certainly the most I’ve ever felt in The Matrix, but also was nice to know that, if there is an emergency situation, let’s not make it worse by fighting with the robot.
(In an emergency, there is the option to both “pull over” and “talk to support.”)
I barely touched anything at first. It took a few minutes for me to even change the music. But I did watch in awe as the turn signal came on and the steering wheel turned completely to make a left. This was curious to me - why did I think the steering wheel wouldn’t physically turn? Couldn’t the wheels turn without the vanity of the steering wheel?
It was a nice 18 minutes of taking it all in, and a perfectly smooth ride if I ever had one! At this time, Waymo wasn’t allowed to drop off passengers at the airport frontage, so it brought me to the AirTrain on campus. As we pulled up to the curb, I contemplated how I would get out in one piece and with all of my things.
I opened the door (two handle clicks; first to unlock, then to open), and clicked the trunk button on the app. I left the passenger door open while I grabbed my suitcase, just in case the Jag wanted to drive away before everything was out. I could feel the car-mounted cameras looking at me as I moved safely up the curb and turned towards the AirTrain stairs. And like that, it was gone.
It may have been my best airport drop off experience to date.
It had all the benefits of ordering a rideshare service, but the comfort of relaxing by yourself. I didn’t have to go through the mess of cars pulling over at the terminal, and the AirTrain brought me right where I needed to be.
Personally, I would 100% order a Waymo again. It really was innovative, stress-free, and cost effective. The combination of futuristic tech with the convenient train infrastructure truly means you can worry less about logistics and spend more time enjoying your trip.
Tags: Airport Access; Mega Airport; North America
Jenn
I-17 Sedona → Phoenix
