Waymo opens driverless robotaxi rides to anyone in Tampa

Waymo opened its fully driverless ride-hailing service to anyone in Tampa on Wednesday, ending the invitation-only phase that began six weeks ago and making Tampa the third Florida city, after Miami and Orlando, where the general public can summon a car with no one behind the wheel.

The Alphabet-owned company announced that anyone in Tampa can now hail a driverless ride through the Waymo app, WFLA reported. Since early September, Tampa riders had been able to book trips only if they had been admitted from a waitlist and received an activation code.

What changed on Wednesday

The change removes the gatekeeping that defined Waymo's first weeks in Tampa. When the company began carrying public riders on Sept. 1, it said tens of thousands of people had signed up for its interest list, but only select riders could book, with more to be added gradually over the following months, according to FOX 13. Now anyone who downloads the app inside the service area can request a ride.

"Opening Waymo's service to everyone in Tampa is another important step in its U.S. expansion," the company said in a statement carried by WFLA.

Where the cars go

Waymo says its Tampa territory covers nearly 50 square miles. WFLA reported that it stretches from Hyde Park north to Northwest Park and Temple Crest, and from Westshore east to Highland Pines.

When the service launched in September, FOX 13 reported that the zone included Hyde Park, Westshore, Water Street, Ybor City and the Channel District, along with destinations such as Armature Works and the Florida Aquarium. The area also takes in the city's three big sports venues: Raymond James Stadium, home of the Buccaneers, the Lightning's downtown arena and Steinbrenner Field.

The company has not said when it will expand beyond those boundaries. FOX 13 has reported that Waymo is testing in Pinellas County and hopes eventually to extend service to St. Petersburg.

How Tampa got here

Waymo began testing vehicles on Tampa streets in December 2025, using human specialists behind the wheel to map roads and gather data on traffic patterns, construction, pedestrians and local weather, according to FOX 13. The company later moved to fully autonomous testing, first offering driverless rides only to employees before opening the vehicles to invited riders.

At the September launch, Waymo's chief marketing officer, Suzanne Philion, said the company remained focused on safety and accessibility as it expanded, FOX 13 reported. Early riders who spoke to the station included Scott Young, board chair of Lighthouse for the Blind and Low Vision, who described his ride as very safe and praised how the vehicle handled lane changes and obstacles, and Tansel Yucelen, a University of South Florida mechanical and aerospace engineering professor, who called the launch a major milestone.

Waymo is not alone on Tampa roads. Tesla launched its own robotaxi service in Tampa in July, according to FOX 13.

Safety questions

The rollout has drawn questions about safety and liability. In July, before the public launch, FOX 13 reported that Frank Russo, a longtime insurance executive who was running for governor at the time, said the expansion needed more oversight and that he wanted to see how many cars the company planned to deploy and what safety models it used. Tampa City Council Chair Alan Clendenin told the station that the state regulates ride-share operations while the city enforces its own roadway rules.

Earlier this month, FOX 13 reported that a driverless Waymo turned onto North Himes Avenue near Raymond James Stadium after a Buccaneers home game and drove north into post-game traffic. Police had converted all lanes of the street to southbound only to clear the stadium lots. The riders, whom the station identified as University of Tampa students, got out of the vehicle. Waymo's response to that incident was not included in the reports reviewed for this article.

Nationally, the company has faced scrutiny over incidents in San Francisco, Atlanta and Austin, including robotaxis that illegally passed stopped school buses in Austin, and in May it temporarily suspended operations in six cities after its vehicles drove through flooded streets, FOX 13 reported. Flooding is a recurring hazard on Tampa streets during summer storms and hurricanes, which makes that episode especially relevant to riders here.

Florida's other Waymo cities

Tampa follows two other Florida markets where Waymo already runs driverless rides for the public.

In Miami, the service is operated with fleet partner Moove, and the company had said it planned to add Miami International Airport, WLRN reported when rides began there in January. Waymo now offers autonomous rides in 14 U.S. cities, according to FOX 13.

The law that made it possible

Florida has one of the most permissive legal frameworks in the country for self-driving cars, which has helped Waymo roll out driverless service in three Florida metro areas within a single year.

In June 2019, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed CS/HB 311, a bill sponsored by then-Sen. Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg and then-Rep. Jason Fischer of Jacksonville. The law allows fully autonomous vehicles to operate on Florida roads without a human driver on board, treats the automated driving system as the vehicle's operator when it is engaged, and removes the requirement that the operator of a fully autonomous vehicle hold a driver's license. It also bars local governments from imposing taxes, fees or other requirements on autonomous vehicles that differ from those applied to conventional vehicles.

That preemption helps explain the division of labor Clendenin described, with the state setting the rules for the vehicles and the city enforcing its traffic laws on them.

What's next

For Tampa residents, the immediate change is simple: anyone inside the roughly 50-square-mile zone can open the Waymo app and request a ride. The open questions are where the service goes next, including whether it reaches Tampa International Airport or Pinellas County, and how the company's driverless cars handle the region's summer flooding and game-day traffic patterns. Waymo has not announced a timeline for expanding its Tampa service area.