From the corner of my eye, a periwinkle minivan with rounded corners and bug-eyed windows comes to a stop at a four-way intersection in North Portland. A pair of people in safety vests occupy the front seats. “It’s a Waymo!” my husband gasps. It’s my first time witnessing a robotaxi out in the wild. Unlike those I’ve seen on social media or in the news, this one isn’t driving on train tracks or into flooded roads—which is the least of it. In May, dozens of empty Waymos clogged a cul-de-sac in an Atlanta suburb. Weeks later, amid heavy World Cup traffic in Los Angeles, one crossed a double yellow line, putting itself in the path of oncoming traffic. In 13 separate incidents this spring, Waymo vehicles drove into active freeway construction zones, prompting a mass recall.

And yet, since the end of April, Waymo has been mapping Portland—“from its iconic bridges to its bustling, rain-slicked corridors,” according to a press release—with vehicles operated by human drivers. This chaperoned data collection is the company’s first step in launching its self-driving taxi service, which has already rolled out in 10 other American cities.

Whether Portland is ready depends on whom you ask. During a public comment period this spring, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) received more than 220 responses from residents, ranging from “I beg you no” to “Safer than some random driver IMHO.” Many supporters portrayed autonomous vehicles (AVs) as part of an unavoidable future. “Don’t keep Portland in the dark ages,” one commenter wrote. “This is going to happen at some point, no point in dragging our feet.”

Among the skeptical, safety emerged as the dominant concern, appearing in 52 percent of all comments. Nearly four in five expressed concern that allowing autonomous ride-hailing vehicles in Portland could introduce new risks and unwelcome chaos. One opponent wrote, “The streets are dangerous enough without robots playing bumper cars with my body and bicycle.”

Another 21 percent were optimistic about the technology’s potential to reduce crashes and improve road safety. According to Waymo, its AVs are involved in 92 percent fewer serious or fatal crashes than human-driven cars. But safety comes down to the programming.

“You could program an incredibly safe vehicle. You can also program an incredibly unsafe vehicle,” says Zachary Lauritzen of Oregon Walks, a pedestrian advocacy nonprofit that is AV-curious. The group is in favor of transit options that meet everyone’s needs, including children, elders, people with disabilities, and people across the income spectrum. Similarly, the nonprofit Disability Rights Oregon is excited about Waymo as a mobility solution but wants strict safety and accessibility guarantees from the Portland City Council. Done right, disability advocates say, AVs could give riders unprecedented independence.

Regulation, however, remains unresolved. Under rules Portland adopted in 2018, companies must obtain a permit before operating AVs without a human driver. PBOT is now revisiting those regulations and proposing new oversight requirements, including trip-level data sharing, public outreach efforts, and additional operating standards before service can launch.

Waymo hopes broader permission comes via the state. Earlier this year, lawmakers in Salem introduced House Bill 4085, which would have cleared a path for companies like Waymo to deploy fully autonomous vehicles across Oregon. The bill failed to advance before the legislative session ended, but we can expect to see some sort of AV bill return.

For Portland, a place that prides itself on biking, walking, and public transit, the arrival of AVs raises valid questions. How will a robotaxi handle the Central Eastside’s maze of freight rail crossings and streetcar tracks? What happens when one Waymo meets another Waymo at a four-way stop? Can it teach Portlanders to zipper-merge? Will it know what to make of thousands of nude cyclists? And if not, will Portlanders simply start ordering Waymos to drive straight into the Willamette River—a sequel to the Lime scooter dumping spree of 2019 (which was itself, let us not forget, a sequel to the Yellow Bikes fiasco of the ’90s)?

At this intersection in North Portland, where we often yell at cars blowing the stop sign on our daily walk, the Waymo waits a few seconds—I count to one, two, three—before continuing straight and driving out of sight.