Pedestrians

Everyone Should Feel Safe Crossing the Road

Regardless of the modes of transportation we use to get around on a daily basis, we are all pedestrians at times as well. Yet every year in the U.S., thousands of pedestrian lives are lost in vehicle-pedestrian accidents. We believe autonomous driving technology holds the potential to make roads safer for vulnerable road users like pedestrians.

How Waymo Shares the Road

Waymo’s mission is to build autonomous driving technology that can help improve road safety. Waymo designs and tests its technology to account for pedestrian safety in many ways.

Waymo’s Internal Maps Include Crosswalks

Waymo’s detailed maps include crucial pedestrian infrastructure such as sidewalks, crosswalks, traffic lights, stop signs, and more. Waymo is designed to respect these road features and follow the laws designed to protect pedestrians. Learn more about how Waymo engineers build and update maps for Waymo zones.

Waymo Can See and Identify Pedestrians

Waymo’s camera and LiDAR systems are capable of detecting pedestrians as far as several football fields away, in all directions from the vehicle. Waymo knows which objects are pedestrians and then predicts what they are likely to do next, such as following a sidewalk, crossing the street, or even knowing when someone is likely to jaywalk.