Look ma, no steering wheel
The government allows robotaxis with no mechanical controls. It signals a wider change in mobility and how we will live.
Autonomous taxis don’t have drivers. So why should they be outfitted with steering wheels and pedals?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration started answering that question last week, granting a historic exemption that lets Amazon’s Zoox put up to 5,000 custom robotaxis on the road without manual controls. State and local sign-off is still required, but the march toward cars that look nothing like those we know feels inevitable.
Strip out the mechanical controls, and you cut costs and free up space. For Zoox, that means passengers face each other instead of staring at the back of a seat.
Louisiana is early to this. Waymo wants to launch in New Orleans next year, pending City Council approval. And the industry is growing from zero faster than most realize: Waymo already provides 500,000 paid rides a week across 10 U.S. metro areas and expects to double that by year’s end.
Bottom line: Safer robotaxis are coming fast, upending how we move and reshaping industries including insurance and law, as well as land use. There’s no need for massive parking lots if most people get around in cars they don’t own.
