A draft bill in Washington D.C., USA, that would permit autonomous vehicles to operate on public roads is emerging as a critical test case for Uber's overarching driverless taxi strategy. Uber is moving beyond merely investing in or partnering with autonomous vehicle developers and is attempting to shape the regulatory framework itself, a move that has placed it in direct opposition to its own business partner, Waymo.
Uber opposes the bill, arguing that the new regulations would threaten the jobs of licensed ride-hail drivers and effectively grant Waymo a monopoly. Reportedly, Uber is lobbying to require that autonomous taxis must be integrated into ride-hailing dispatch platforms that also feature human drivers.
Uber's Head of U.S. Policy and Federal Affairs, Harvey C., stated at a D.C. Council roundtable in May concerning existing ride-hail driver regulations: "We have seen in other jurisdictions that this regulatory model, which only allows companies to operate their own autonomous vehicles and has clear loopholes, disrupts urban transportation." He argued that idling and aimless cruising by driverless taxis would worsen traffic congestion, that autonomous vehicles cannot provide necessary physical assistance to the elderly or disabled as human drivers can, and that data suggests one autonomous vehicle could displace roughly four ride-hail driver jobs.
When asked about the mixed-operation model Uber advocates, Harvey C. outlined the company's regulatory vision. Based on public audio and transcripts, he said: "A mixed model means consumers should have two travel options. When a user opens the app, they can choose the vehicle type on demand. I would even advocate for making this a mandatory regulatory requirement—platforms must ensure users can hail an Uber vehicle driven by a human."
Waymo, part of Alphabet, supports the bill, stating it ensures the safe deployment of autonomous vehicles, supports public transit, guarantees equitable access to transportation, considers worker interests, and does not impose restrictive clauses on companies like Uber.
The two companies are scheduled to participate in a full-day hearing on Monday to present their respective positions. The bill is not expected for an immediate vote; stakeholders aim for it to be reviewed and approved by the end of this year, before D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser leaves office in January. Nevertheless, the lobbying and debate surrounding this bill have escalated into an industry-wide discussion with implications far beyond Washington D.C.
Introduced by Councilmember Charles Allen in May, the bill seeks to amend the 2012 Autonomous Vehicle Act to permit testing without a safety driver and commercial driverless passenger operations in the District. Currently, companies like Waymo and Zoox can test autonomous vehicles locally but must have a human safety operator inside.
The new regulations would authorize the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to issue permits for driverless testing and commercial operations to qualified companies. Mandatory requirements include carrying a minimum of $5 million in third-party liability insurance and, in the event of an accident, reporting data within 8 hours for commercial fleet vehicles and within 72 hours for private autonomous vehicles (a category not yet available on the market).
The bill also proposes a tax on driverless taxis based on vehicle miles traveled, set at $0.15 per mile—a rate considered burdensomely high by the autonomous vehicle industry. Revenue from this Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) tax would be split evenly: 50% for public transit system development, with the remaining funds dedicated to retraining and employment support for ride-hail and taxi drivers, aiding those at risk of displacement by autonomous technology.
The legislative process involves more than just Uber and Waymo. Entities including Tesla, Lyft, trucking unions, the Service Employees International Union, disability rights and accessibility advocacy groups, local business associations, road safety advocates, government officials, and several think tanks are all scheduled to speak at Monday's hearing.
A New York-based group called the "Coalition for Accountability and Road Safety" has even launched a campaign against driverless taxis, canvassing voters and posting opposition content on social media. The group is registered to an employee of the New York lobbying firm Pita Bishop D., which is closely linked to the labor law firm Pita Law. According to publicly filed lobbying records in Washington, this firm has been engaged by several unions and a New York black car driver workers' compensation fund over the past year, though the precise funding source behind the current anti-autonomous vehicle campaign remains unclear.
This bill affects the core interests of all autonomous vehicle developers, active drivers, and the ride-hail and taxi companies that employ them in Washington D.C. Given the massive scale of the two leading companies, the stakes for Uber and Waymo are particularly high: Uber is the largest ride-hailing and on-demand delivery platform in the U.S., while Waymo is a global leader in driverless taxi services, completing over 500,000 autonomous trips weekly across 11 cities.
If Uber's lobbying succeeds and Washington or other regions adopt the mixed-dispatch platform model, companies like Waymo would be left with two options: integrate into third-party apps like Uber's to receive trip requests, or build their own operational platforms, requiring them to hire human drivers to offer ride-hail services alongside their multi-billion-dollar, years-in-development autonomous fleets. Conversely, from Uber's perspective, if Waymo successfully pushes the bill through, Uber itself could be entirely shut out of the local autonomous ride-hailing market.
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