City of Phoenix Aviation Director Chad Makovsky, A.A.E., explains the Sky Harbor team worked with Waymo to take a “crawl, walk, run” approach. “We were excited about their approach. They came to us first and asked what our challenges were as it related to ground transportation and what our goals were,” he said. “They then adapted their … technology to help meet our goals of sustainability, reducing emissions (and to) provide a more predictable and timely experience for our customers at the curb.”
The airport focused on training its employees as Waymo service was rolled out. “We wanted to make sure all our employees were comfortable so we were just as transparent as Waymo was with them,” Demory said. “We held training sessions with police and fire for the City of Phoenix and airport fire stations. (First responders) had as much an opportunity as they wanted to spend time with, and become familiar with, the (Waymo) vehicle.”
Today, hundreds of Waymo trips are made to and from Sky Harbor’s terminals and Sky Train stations daily, said Waymo Strategic Partnerships Development Manager Melanie d’Achon.
So where is Waymo heading next? Atlanta will be the next city. Waymo has also tested their technology in Seattle, New York City, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and in Tokyo, but hasn’t announced any additional cities. They have also taken “road trips” to generalize the technology in Las Vegas, San Diego and New Orleans. “We want to be careful with this approach. Anytime that we release externally that we are coming to a city, want to make sure that it is happening.” explained Waymo Strategic Partnerships Development Manager Melanie d’Achon.
Waymo Senior Product Manager, Airports and City Expansion, Nick Rose said the company is very careful in how it deploys, especially at airports. Rose plans to take what Waymo learned at Sky Harbor for any future airport rollout. “If (we find something unexpected), we learn from it quickly and make corrections,” he said.
“Never say no,” City of Phoenix Assistant Aviation Director and Chief Operating Officer Sarah Demory, A.A.E., ACE, said when asked what advice she would give to other airports considering Waymo service. “We are an innovative city … we try to make things happen.” She added, “Every airport is different, we are very collaborative. That is a key part of our success.”
