Waymo's driverless robotaxi service is set to expand into Ontario, a move that puts Toronto on track to join the growing list of cities where passengers travel without a human at the controls. On Friday, the company named Toronto as the hub of its planned 2028 push into the Canadian market, a decision that came after Ontario's provincial government gave its approval.
Ontario's Automated Vehicle Pilot Program has a new participant in Waymo, after the company's spokesperson relayed the approval notice to a broadcast outlet. A provincially issued authorisation from Ontario's Ministry of Transportation cleared the way for manual driving operations and on-road testing to proceed.
The California-based technology company announced that groundwork for an autonomous ride-hailing network in Toronto will begin taking shape within the coming days. Waymo vehicles are set to appear on local roads as the company moves into an initial phase of charting street layouts and network routes for its self-driving technology.
Waymo has placed Toronto on its schedule for fall testing, with human safety operators seated behind the wheel as the company works to build an understanding of how drivers behave on local streets. Toronto riders are set to gain access to the service in 2028, according to the firm's projections.
Boarding a driverless robotaxi remains an option riders will need to hold off on for now. Waymo disclosed to a broadcast news outlet that mapping work across a set of Toronto districts — among them St. Lawrence Market, Harbourfront, Roncesvalles Village, Parkdale, Liberty Village, Don Mills, Yorkdale, Leaside, East York, Summerhill, Yonge and Eglinton, Weston, Mimico, and Etobicoke — is expected to get underway in the near term.
Continuous coverage — running through all twenty-four hours of each day — is planned for the Toronto testing programme. Under Ontario's Automated Vehicle Pilot Program, road-based trials by Waymo across the city will be conducted as part of the registered framework.
Alphabet subsidiary Waymo has put forward requests to B.C. provincial authorities seeking permission to operate its autonomous vehicles there. The company had previously entered into discussions with regulatory bodies across Canada regarding authorisation to extend its driverless ride-hailing operations into additional regions, a news outlet reported.
Across 15 American metro areas — spanning locations in California, Texas, and Florida among others — Waymo has established an active rider network. Tokyo served as the launchpad for the firm's overseas ambitions, with route-mapping work and logistical groundwork laid there during 2025, and a Tokyo rollout planned for 2027.
Waymo's driverless vehicles began moving through London's streets in April 2026, with revenue-generating passenger service pencilled in for later that year.
