Waymo Begins Restoring Freeway Routes After Robotaxi Software Updates

Waymo is gradually bringing freeway routes back to its robotaxi service more than two months after temporarily removing them because of concerns about how its autonomous vehicles behaved around highway construction zones.

The company announced Wednesday on X that freeway service would begin returning in Phoenix, its first market for fully driverless ride-hailing. Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area are expected to follow in the coming days, according to a Waymo spokesperson.

Waymo said it is resuming freeway operations across its service territory, including roads affected by construction, after introducing software updates intended to improve how its vehicles navigate highway work zones.

The changes include improvements to scene recognition and routing, according to the company.

Waymo faces growing scrutiny over robotaxi safety

The return of freeway driving comes as Waymo and other autonomous vehicle operators face increased scrutiny over how robotaxis behave in complex traffic conditions and around emergency responders.

Earlier this week, Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-Calif., proposed legislation that would direct federal regulators to establish minimum national safety standards for autonomous vehicle operators.

The proposal follows incidents involving autonomous vehicles that reportedly blocked ambulances and fire trucks, entered active crime scenes and failed to recognise safety indicators,s including traffic cones and flares.

Waymo initially introduced freeway rides in San Francisco, Phoenix and Los Angeles in November 2025. The expansion was an important step for the company because freeway access could shorten journey times and improve connections to destinations such as airports. Waymo later introduced freeway routes in Miami.

Construction-zone incidents led to a freeway pause

The freeway option became popular with riders, and its sudden disappearance in May prompted questions on social media.

At the time, Waymo said it was working to improve robotaxi performance around construction zones and was incorporating recent technical findings into its autonomous driving software before restoring the routes.

Several weeks later, Waymo voluntarily recalled nearly 4,000 robotaxis after identifying at least 13 incidents in which its vehicles entered highway sections that had been closed for construction.

The incidents were disclosed in a June filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Waymo said no crashes or injuries were reported, but the company temporarily restricted freeway operations after reviewing the events.

The recall marked the sixth involving Waymo’s robotaxi fleet. Previous recalls have resulted in software updates addressing other unusual driving behaviour, including vehicles entering flooded roads and improperly responding to school buses.

With its latest software changes now being deployed, Waymo is beginning a gradual return to freeway driving, starting in Phoenix before expanding the restored service to additional robotaxi markets.