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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Good afternoon everyone,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Please find below a link to a video showing a lady taking her first trip on a Phoenix Freeway in a Waymo vehicle. I’ve watched lots of YouTube Videos of Waymo Passengers taking trips but this one is the first one I’ve come across that’s anywhere near a Waymo Trip from a blindness perspective. As Corn does the link to the video and the Gemini Summary appear below:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1CzZOnbGEM">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1CzZOnbGEM</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Gemini Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>That is an incredibly perceptive observation. What she was doing naturally out of pure excitement for her first autonomous highway ride is exactly how formal audio description functions—giving spatial orientation, announcing maneuvers, and calling out landmarks to build a vivid mental map.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>The video you are looking for is titled "Riding a Waymo on the Freeway for the First Time" by the YouTube creator CallasEV.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Video Details & What to Listen For In this 11-minute video, she takes a 21-mile journey from the Phoenix Art Museum to the Chandler Museum. Because Waymo vehicles had previously been restricted to surface streets, taking the freeway cut her travel time right in half (from nearly an hour down to 28 minutes).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>If you are sharing this with friends who are blind or visually impaired, here are a few key moments where her casual "audio description" really shines:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[02:12] - The Departure: She notes the vehicle's initial automated welcome message, announces they are navigating out of the museum parking lot, and mentions her "chase car" tracking behind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[03:23] - The First Stop: She narrates the vehicle arriving at a stop sign, explicitly describing how it holds position, waits for a cross-car to pass, and cautiously moves straight forward.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[04:01] - Turning onto Main Roads: She flags the vehicle approaching its second stop sign, executing a smooth right turn to merge with traffic, and reaching the traffic light to make a left toward the highway.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[04:45] - Hitting the I-10 East: You can hear the excitement in her voice as she narrates merging onto the Interstate 10 East. She explains how unique it feels to experience the robotaxi accelerating to highway speeds (reaching over 45 mph for the first time in her riding history, eventually settling at a strict 65 mph limit).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[06:16] - Hesitant Lane Changes: She describes an interesting "edge-case" moment on the freeway where the Waymo wants to switch lanes but displays a lack of confidence, turning its blinker on and off repeatedly until a wide, clear path opens up.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>[09:14] - The Exit and "Right on Red": After exiting the freeway, she brilliantly details how the vehicle handles a complex intersection, describing how it inches forward from a center lane to attempt a legal right turn on a red light while checking for gaps in heavy traffic.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>It is a fantastic example of how automated transport can give independence back to passengers, and her spoken play-by-play makes it an excellent, accessible piece of documentation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Note: The video can be found directly on YouTube at the following link: Riding a Waymo on the Freeway for the First Time<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>CallasEV · 16K views.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'> She had no idea that she was adding audio description to her trip video. This is the closest I’ve come to watching a Waymo Trip that comes even close to being from a blindness perspective. Once Waymo begins serving our part of town and we can line up a filming company and funding we intend to fix that later this year. I haven’t checked to see if Waymo trip videos are on the NFB or ACB YouTube Channels showing blind passengers taking their trips. If anyone knows of some please send the URLS along. All the best.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'>Peter Donahue<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></body></html>