Uber and Waymo split over D.C. robotaxi bill that hands Waymo a six-month head start

Uber and Waymo are lobbying against each other on a D.C. Council bill that Waymo backs and Uber calls a "de facto monopoly" — Waymo has already cleared the bill's 180-day, 250,000-mile testing bar, so passing it as written today would let Waymo enter with a six-month lead. The fight signals where AV policy is fracturing: incumbents that have logged local test miles want the bar locked in, while Uber, Tesla, and others push to count out-of-state miles and cut the $1M application fee, $5M permit fee, and $0.15-per-mile tax.

Source: techcrunch.com ↗

Waymo, which has been testing its AVs with human safety operators in Washington, D.C., has already surpassed the 180-day and 250,000-mile requirements.

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Why this matters

→ Waymo's test-mile lead could lock competitors out of D.C. for six months.
→ AV policy fracturing between incumbents and entrants over fee structure and mile counting.
→ Uber and Waymo partnership deteriorating into direct regulatory combat.

Policy collision