Cruise can finally start charging for fully driverless robotaxis

Self-driving company Cruise has received a permit from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to charge for fully driverless rides, a milestone that the company claims makes it “the first and only company to operate a commercial, driverless ride-hail service in a major U.S. city.” Cruise has been testing free driverless rides for the public in San Francisco since February, and now, it will be able to offer paid fares.

For this paid service, the GM and Honda-backed Cruise will be able to operate its 30 all-electric vehicles at night from 10PM to 6AM in “select streets” in San Francisco, and the vehicles won’t be able to go faster than 30 miles per hour, according to the draft resolution (pdf). Cruise will also only be able to...

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