6 ms·

This is important if nothing else because Miami sees much more rain than SF and Phoenix: Miami: 57 in. (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#da

This is important if nothing else because Miami sees much more rain than SF and Phoenix: Miami: 57 in. (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset=normals-annualseasonal&timeframe=30&station=USW00092811 https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset... SF: 25 in. (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset=normals-annualseasonal&timeframe=30&station=US1CASF0004 https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset...) Phoenix: 7 in. (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset=normals-annualseasonal&timeframe=30&station=US1AZMR0313 https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/us-climate-normals/#dataset...)

bbor 2y ago
Good point! Though also worth mentioning that they're already in Atlanta, which gets ~50in (and 59in so far this year, despite the mind-bending "first October without rain in recorded history")
- newfocogi 2y ago
  I think they've announced they're headed to Atlanta in early 2025. So they may be testing there, but I don't believe they are at GA in GA :)
  - creaghpatr 2y ago
    They are frequently spotted but not yet available in ATL.
- fngjdflmdflg 2y ago
  Good point, I guess I missed when that happened. Looking at some news sites and Waymo's blog, it seems that they are testing in Atlanta and will start accepting customers in 2025.[0] >It currently operates fleets of driverless cars in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Phoenix. It also plans to launch a robotaxi service in Atlanta in an exclusive partnership with Uber.[1] [0] https://waymo.com/blog/2024/09/waymo-and-uber-expand-partnership/ https://waymo.com/blog/2024/09/waymo-and-uber-expand-partner... [1] https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/5/24313346/waymo-miami-robotaxi-moove-2026 https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/5/24313346/waymo-miami-robo...
ecesena 2y ago
Interesting random fact: when it rains, waymo turns on the windshield wipers
- pengaru 2y ago
  > Interesting random fact: when it rains, waymo turns on the windshield wipers The jaguar i-pace does this independent of the waymo use case.
  - dgfitz 2y ago
    My 2011 Mazda also did this.
    - Grazester 2y ago
      Cars dating back to 2008 if not earlier. It can also be annoying/doesn't work very efficiently
  - rdsubhas 2y ago
    The interesting part here is... the Waymo has no reason to. There is no driver. All cameras and sensors are outside. It's just for not freaking out the passenger :)
    - pengaru 2y ago
      > The interesting part here is... the Waymo has no reason to. There is no driver. All cameras and sensors are outside. It's just for not freaking out the passenger :) We have very different thresholds for what's interesting. The platform provides this feature out of the box, why would waymo go out of their way to disable it. Obviously potential occupants would appreciate seeing out the windshield if it's raining, why that is interesting escapes me.
    - Fricken 2y ago
      Waymo has wipers on it's LIDAR dome https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/6biyr8/waymo_wipers_on_the_lidar_sensor/#lightbox https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/6biyr8/way...
ethbr1 2y ago
Also relevant, when it rains in Miami during the summer, it pours. As in, zero visibility for 15-30 minutes, then it's past. So if it can handle Miami tropical rain, it should be okay with all sorts of normal rain. Out of curiosity, what's Waymo's current production sensor suite mix? I'd assume lidar and radar would also be very unhappy with the surrounding space suddenly being ~10%(?) liquid water droplets.
- david-gpu 2y ago
  I would expect service to be canceled while it is pouring down. Do we have reasons to believe that they have the ability to ride safely during heavy rain? I haven't been keeping up.
  - RivieraKid 2y ago
    They can handle heavy rain, see time 6:00: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 From their August 2023 blog post: > During this past winter season in California with its record rain, high winds, and thunderstorms, we were able to maintain 99.4% fleet uptime
    - david-gpu 2y ago
      Thank you, that was fascinating.
    - 1024core 2y ago
      How does it make out lane markings? Or is it all just GPS-based?
      - AlotOfReading 2y ago
        Localization is primarily based on visual registration, i.e. matching the current surroundings to the closest data in its map. Lane markings are based on map data and what it's able to see in real-time.
      - 2y ago
RivieraKid 2y ago
Waymo can handle heavy rain, see time 6:00 here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0
- OnlineGladiator 2y ago
  And yet I regularly get stuck behind a Waymo in SF when there's just a little bit of fog.
drewg123 2y ago
When I took Waymo in Phoenix, I booked a ride from a suburban hotel to a restaurant in a strip mall. One of the things I noticed was that I was picked up far away from the entrance of the hotel (eg, not under the overhang that protects from sun and rain, where every Uber has picked me up and dropped me off). I recall thinking that it was good there was no weather in Phoenix b/c I had to walk far enough I'd have gotten soaked in a decent rainstorm. Have they changed this?
- dannyobrien 2y ago
  One thing I've noticed about the SF deployment is that it's slowly gotten better at this. At first it was very cautious about where it would pick you up/drop you off, but now it offers much closer options (from a menu -- a bit like Uber at airports). I suspect this might be something that is human-added from data collected in past trips.
- tortilla 2y ago
  Also Waymo will not pick you up on private streets. I live in a small community with a private street and I have to walk to the nearest public one (2 mins).
ecocentrik 2y ago
The rainfall can pose serious visibility risks that will be as much of a challenge as picking up and dropping off customers on a rainy day. Extreme high tides do still flood some roads on Miami Beach with brackish water, which isn't something you want to drive through in an electric car. On the less challenging side, the city has zero snow, no road ice to worry about.

bbor 2y ago

Good point! Though also worth mentioning that they're already in Atlanta, which gets ~50in (and 59in so far this year, despite the mind-bending "first October without rain in recorded history")

newfocogi 2y ago
I think they've announced they're headed to Atlanta in early 2025. So they may be testing there, but I don't believe they are at GA in GA :)
- creaghpatr 2y ago
  They are frequently spotted but not yet available in ATL.
fngjdflmdflg 2y ago
Good point, I guess I missed when that happened. Looking at some news sites and Waymo's blog, it seems that they are testing in Atlanta and will start accepting customers in 2025.[0] >It currently operates fleets of driverless cars in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Phoenix. It also plans to launch a robotaxi service in Atlanta in an exclusive partnership with Uber.[1] [0] https://waymo.com/blog/2024/09/waymo-and-uber-expand-partnership/ https://waymo.com/blog/2024/09/waymo-and-uber-expand-partner... [1] https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/5/24313346/waymo-miami-robotaxi-moove-2026 https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/5/24313346/waymo-miami-robo...

ecesena 2y ago

Interesting random fact: when it rains, waymo turns on the windshield wipers

pengaru 2y ago
> Interesting random fact: when it rains, waymo turns on the windshield wipers The jaguar i-pace does this independent of the waymo use case.
- dgfitz 2y ago
  My 2011 Mazda also did this.
  - Grazester 2y ago
    Cars dating back to 2008 if not earlier. It can also be annoying/doesn't work very efficiently
- rdsubhas 2y ago
  The interesting part here is... the Waymo has no reason to. There is no driver. All cameras and sensors are outside. It's just for not freaking out the passenger :)
  - pengaru 2y ago
    > The interesting part here is... the Waymo has no reason to. There is no driver. All cameras and sensors are outside. It's just for not freaking out the passenger :) We have very different thresholds for what's interesting. The platform provides this feature out of the box, why would waymo go out of their way to disable it. Obviously potential occupants would appreciate seeing out the windshield if it's raining, why that is interesting escapes me.
  - Fricken 2y ago
    Waymo has wipers on it's LIDAR dome https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/6biyr8/waymo_wipers_on_the_lidar_sensor/#lightbox https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/6biyr8/way...

ethbr1 2y ago

Also relevant, when it rains in Miami during the summer, it pours. As in, zero visibility for 15-30 minutes, then it's past. So if it can handle Miami tropical rain, it should be okay with all sorts of normal rain. Out of curiosity, what's Waymo's current production sensor suite mix? I'd assume lidar and radar would also be very unhappy with the surrounding space suddenly being ~10%(?) liquid water droplets.

david-gpu 2y ago
I would expect service to be canceled while it is pouring down. Do we have reasons to believe that they have the ability to ride safely during heavy rain? I haven't been keeping up.
- RivieraKid 2y ago
  They can handle heavy rain, see time 6:00: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 From their August 2023 blog post: > During this past winter season in California with its record rain, high winds, and thunderstorms, we were able to maintain 99.4% fleet uptime
  - david-gpu 2y ago
    Thank you, that was fascinating.
  - 1024core 2y ago
    How does it make out lane markings? Or is it all just GPS-based?
    - AlotOfReading 2y ago
      Localization is primarily based on visual registration, i.e. matching the current surroundings to the closest data in its map. Lane markings are based on map data and what it's able to see in real-time.
    - 2y ago

RivieraKid 2y ago

Waymo can handle heavy rain, see time 6:00 here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0 https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bm1A3aaQnh0

OnlineGladiator 2y ago
And yet I regularly get stuck behind a Waymo in SF when there's just a little bit of fog.

drewg123 2y ago

When I took Waymo in Phoenix, I booked a ride from a suburban hotel to a restaurant in a strip mall. One of the things I noticed was that I was picked up far away from the entrance of the hotel (eg, not under the overhang that protects from sun and rain, where every Uber has picked me up and dropped me off). I recall thinking that it was good there was no weather in Phoenix b/c I had to walk far enough I'd have gotten soaked in a decent rainstorm. Have they changed this?

dannyobrien 2y ago
One thing I've noticed about the SF deployment is that it's slowly gotten better at this. At first it was very cautious about where it would pick you up/drop you off, but now it offers much closer options (from a menu -- a bit like Uber at airports). I suspect this might be something that is human-added from data collected in past trips.
tortilla 2y ago
Also Waymo will not pick you up on private streets. I live in a small community with a private street and I have to walk to the nearest public one (2 mins).

ecocentrik 2y ago

The rainfall can pose serious visibility risks that will be as much of a challenge as picking up and dropping off customers on a rainy day. Extreme high tides do still flood some roads on Miami Beach with brackish water, which isn't something you want to drive through in an electric car. On the less challenging side, the city has zero snow, no road ice to worry about.