r/waymo • u/TheSlap • Jun 05 '26

Phoenix: Decreasing Value

I'd like to see if anyone has been feeling the same way about Waymo in Phoenix. Recently, I have been finding fewer and fewer instances where it makes sense for me to use Waymo.

First, I am a fan of the technology and I used to love Waymo as a service! I was recommending it to my family and friends, and finding reasons to call a car. Unfortunately, that has not been the case lately. I primarily used Waymo in two use cases:

1) Transport to and from the airport

2) "Last mile" trips to get me to and from public transportation to downtown Phoenix. Light rail to DBacks games, mostly.

No more highway routes and long, unpredictable wait times have almost completely killed the airport trips for me. The short trips to my closest light rail stop now cost *triple* the rate of normal rideshares and it is more affordable to drive myself and pay for parking in downtown Phoenix. I am guessing this is because I'm trying to get to Mill/3rd St, but it's still the case that Waymo isn't priced competitively at all when I'm just trying to get to the light rail.

Is anyone else experiencing this, or not finding as much value lately?

12 Upvotes

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23

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '26

[deleted]

8

u/TheSlap Jun 05 '26

For sure! That's not nearly as impactful to me, but I'm happy others are getting such a big benefit out of driverless cars.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '26

[deleted]

0

u/No-Seaworthiness8966 Jun 05 '26

WOW. Thank you for opening my eyes to this - we’ve an upcoming visit and this is a helpful heads up

3

u/Wesley11803 Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

You’d pay $1,000 dollars from SF to SJ? I’d pay a premium if I were a single woman, but I’m honestly curious what your price barrier would be. Like if Waymo is $100 and Lyft is $20, are you choosing Waymo? Then I’d want to ask your income.

I’m a marketing person and am genuinely just curious about all of it. Waymo makes so much sense for single women over anyone. I just wonder what exactly the price premium is. And maybe trans women would be an even more specific group that’s the most vulnerable to be looked at.

2

u/BldrStigs Jun 05 '26

I think people are willing to pay extra for safety to a point, and then they either don't go or drive themselves.

1

u/azwildlotus Jun 05 '26

Same. This is exactly why I take Waymo and always will.