Waymo plans to launch self-driving taxis in Toronto in 2028

Following its launch in five major cities in the United States, Waymo LLC announced its plan to bring its driverless ride-hailing service to Canada in 2028.

The company said it will start laying groundwork in the city in the coming days with Waymo vehicles manually driven on the streets of Toronto for high-definition mapping of local street networks and testing with trained autonomous specialists behind the wheel.

Waymo said this validation period will ensure the Waymo Driver adapts seamlessly to Toronto’s distinct driving conditions. Before a Waymo vehicle drives autonomously in a new city, they’re led by human drivers.

It will soon begin conducting extensive trials of Waymo’s technology as part of its mapping and safety validation work across select neighbourhoods in Toronto, including the St. Lawrence Market, Harbourfront, Roncesvalles Village, Parkdale, Liberty Village, Don Mills, Yorkdale, Leaside, East York, Summerhill, Yonge & Eglinton, Weston, Mimico and Etobicoke.

“Expanding into Canada marks an important milestone in Waymo’s global journey,” Waymo co-chief executive Tekedra Mawakana said in a press release. “We’re proud to bring the Waymo Driver to Canada’s largest city and to partner with the vibrant business, arts and cultural communities that share our commitment to safer streets and more accessible mobility.”

Waymo has been approved to take part in the automated vehicle pilot program and has received official provincial permit from Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation to begin manual driving and testing, the company said. It added that the company will continue to work with regulators to ensure it has the proper permits through every phase of its operations.

We’re bringing the magic of Waymo to Toronto! 🇨🇦

In the coming days, you’ll begin seeing Waymo’s all-electric vehicles driving through Toronto’s streets as we lay the groundwork for our ride-hailing service.

Our goal is to begin serving riders in 2028.

Sign up for future… pic.twitter.com/FQmGxwV5T9

— Waymo (@Waymo) October 16, 2026

Waymo is not yet offering commercial rides, but its testing hours typically run 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All testing on public roads in Toronto will be conducted as part of Ontario’s Automated Vehicle Pilot Program.

It plans to begin with a limited number of its all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles and will scale gradually over time.

Waymo will be partnering with Element Fleet Management, a Toronto-based company that will provide end-to-end fleet management services.

It said this will create hundreds of roles over time spanning fleet maintenance, validation driving, customer service and other operations functions.

Waymo has existing ties to Canada, including a long-term investor relationship with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and its manufacturing partner, Magna International Inc.

“As a Canadian company, we are proud to be expanding our partnership with Waymo to help bring autonomous ride-hailing to Toronto,” said Element Fleet Management chief executive Laura Dottori-Attanasio.

Waymo said its all-weather Driver can provide an additional option that complements Toronto’s transportation ecosystem, bike lanes and public transit.

Its own data says the Waymo Driver was involved in 95 per cent fewer or 20 times fewer crashes involving serious injury or worse compared to humans in the cities where it operates.