>>> ARE YOU WILLING TO GET A RIDE FROM A DRIVERLESS CAR? WAYMO IS SURE HOPING YOU WILL AND IT IS SHARING NEW RESEARCH ON IT SAFETY RECORD OF ITS DRIVERLESS CAR HERE IN THE BAY AREA, AS WELL AS LOS ANGELES AND PHOENIX. WAYMO IS TRYING TO DISTINGUISH ITSELF FROM ITS MAIN COMPETITOR, WHICH REMAINS UNDER TWO SEPARATE GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS OVER SAFETY. SENIOR BETTY GET A REPORTER EXPLAINS. >> Reporter: DRIVERLESS CARS MAY NOT REQUIRE YOUR HANDS ON THE WHEEL TO GET AROUND, BUT THEY DO NEED YOUR TRUST IN THE TECHNOLOGY. TRAFFIC TROUBLES INVOLVING SELF DRIVING CARS HAS LEFT SOME SKEPTICAL, EVEN ENTERED. PLEASE THERE IS A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE COMMOTIONS ABOUT IT AND ARE JUDGING US ON THE SIDELINE. >> Reporter: HAD SAFETY RESEARCH FOR WAYMO, AND SISTER COMPANY TO GOOGLE, THAT IS CURRENTLY DRIVING SALE DRIVING FLEET AND SEMPER CISCO, PHOENIX, AND LOS ANGELES. THE DRIVERLESS CARS UNLOCKED MORE THAN 7 MILLION MILES ON PUBLIC ROADWAYS OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS AND NOW WAYMO IS RELEASING NEW RESEARCH ABOUT IT SAFETY RECORDS. AFTER ANALYZING ITS OWN CRASH DATA AGAINST HUMANS, WAYMO FOUND ITS DRIVERLESS CARS, COMPARED TO SAN FRANCISCO DRIVERS, WAS THREE TIMES LESS LIKELY TO BE INVOLVED IN ANY KIND OF CRASH REPORTED TO POLICE. NINE TIMES LESS LIKELY TO BE INVOLVED IN A CRASH WITH SOME TYPE OF INJURY. THAT MEANS HAD HUMANS BEEN AT THE WHEEL, SAN FRANCISCO WOULD HAVE HAD NINE MORE CRASHES INVOLVING INJURIES. ACCORDING TO WAYMO'S ESTIMATES. >> WE REALLY ARE TRYING TO BE TRANSPARENT. >> Reporter: WAYMO WANT TO SAY EXACTLY HOW MANY DRIVERLESS CARS IT HAS OF THE ROAD. IN AUGUST, TOLD REGULATORS IT SAN FRANCISCO FLEET TOTAL 250 VEHICLES. WAYMO SAYS IT HAS SINCE EXPANDED. BY HOW MUCH? WE DON'T KNOW. MEANWHILE, WAYMO TELLS US TRYING TO ACCURATELY COMPARE ITS DRIVERLESS CARS TO HUMANS IS DIFFICULT ITS CARS DON'T OPERATE IN ALL THE SAME PLACES HUMANS DO. WAYMO'S VEHICLES DON'T DRIVE ON HIGHWAYS OR SEVERE WEATHER, LIKE AN FOG OR HEAVY RAIN. PLUS, HUMANS DON'T ALWAYS REPORT CRASHES. SO WAYMO HAD TO FACTOR FOR THAT, TOO. THE COMPANY RECENTLY SUBMITTED ITS DATA TO A SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL WHO REVIEWED, MOST HAVING INDEPENDENT RESEARCHERS CONFIRM THE FINDINGS. >> AT THE END OF THE DAY, DO YOU BELIEVE THESE CARS ARE SAFER THAN HUMAN DRIVERS? >> YES, THESE VEHICLES ARE DEFINITELY SAFER THAN HUMAN DRIVERS. IN THE AREAS WE OPERATE, THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT WE ARE SHOWING. >> Reporter: IT IS A BOLD ANNOUNCEMENT BUT NOT ONE TRAFFIC SAFETY EXPERT, CAROL FLANAGAN, IS READY TO MAKE. >> I AM NOT PREPARED TO SAY YES DEFINITIVELY TO THAT STATEMENT. I JUST DON'T THINK THERE IS ENOUGH MILES. >> Reporter: REMEMBER, WAYMO'S DRIVERLESS HAS LOGGED MORE THAN 7 MILLION MILES WHEN THE STATE FIRST HIT THE ROAD. BUT HUMANS DRIVE MORE THAN 3 TRILLION MILES EVERY YEAR. >> THE REASON WE CARE ABOUT HOW MANY MILES THERE ARE IS BECAUSE BAD STUFF THAT HAPPENS REQUIRES JUST A LOT MORE MILES. >> Reporter: FLANAGAN IS A RESEARCH PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE. WILL REVIEW ITS NEW DATA BEFORE OFFICIALLY SUBMITTING IT TO A SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL. >> I THINK I CAN SIGN ON TO, THIS IS THE BEST EVIDENCE THAT THEY ARE GETTING WITH CRASHES. >> Reporter: AFTER EXAMINING WAYMO'S FOUNDING FINDINGS, IT SOUNDS LIKE IT SHOWS A LOT OF PROMISE, WE ARE STILL NOT AT THE . WHERE WE CAN MAKE BROAD CLAIMS THAT DRIVERLESS CARS ARE, IN FACT, SAFER THAN HUMAN DRIVERS. >> I THINK THAT IS A FAIR CHARACTERIZATION, YES. >> AS WAYMO HOPES TO WIN OVER MORE WRITERS, ITS MAIN COMPETITORS, GM'S CRUISE REMAINS OFF THE ROAD , AFTER ATTEMPTS TO NAVIGATE RECENT LAYOFFS AND TWO SEPARATE GOVERNMENT PROBES INVESTIGATING SAFETY ISSUES. CRUISE SAYING IT IS FOCUSED ON REBUILDING TRUST AND OPERATING WITH THE HIGHEST STANDARDS WHEN IT COMES TO SAFETY , INTEGRITY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY. CLEARLY WANT TO BE JUDGED ON OUR OWN. WE WANT PEOPLE TO SEE THE WORK THAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING. AND OUR PERFORMANCE. AND IT IS, OF COURSE, LIKE ANYONE, FOR ANY SPORTS TEAM, THERE IS A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SPORTS TEAMS. YOU DON'T WANT TO JUDGE THE WHOLE LEAGUE. IT'S THE SAME, RIGHT? >> Reporter: WITH THE INVESTIGATIVE UNIT. >> Reporter: IF YOU HAVE A STORY FOR ANYONE IN THE INVESTIGATIVE UNIT
