Autonomous vehicles were supposed to cut traffic—what if they don't?

Here's something that might surprise you — despite all the hype, robotaxis aren't actually reducing traffic congestion. You’d think that with AI-driven vehicles, we'd see smoother roads and fewer jams, right? Well, according to Jonathan M. Gitlin writing in Ars Technica, data from Waymo’s reports to California regulators shows that, in reality, robotaxis are no more effective at cutting traffic than traditional ride-hailing services like Uber or Lyft. It’s a bit of a head-scratcher — after billions invested and promises of safer, smarter travel, the traffic problem remains stubborn. As Gitlin points out, even with fewer crashes and lower insurance claims, these autonomous cars just tend to fill the same roads, not clear them. So what does this actually mean for cities and commuters? It suggests we might need a whole new approach, because technology alone isn’t fixing the congestion problem. If this pattern holds, the next big step might be rethinking how we design urban mobility — and not just relying on smarter cars.