On September 9, 2026, Lyft and Waymo began offering driverless rides through the Lyft app in Nashville. Waymo has served the city since April through its own app, so this adds a second way to reach the same cars.
How does the Lyft match work?
Riders don’t pick a Waymo directly. They request a regular Lyft, and the app may match them with a fully autonomous vehicle, with no second app to download. WSMV reports that the option covers Standard, Priority Pickup, Wait & Save, and Extra Comfort requests, at no additional cost compared with a regular Lyft request. Both ends of the trip must fall inside the shared service area, which covers downtown and Broadway, North Nashville and Germantown, East Nashville, Midtown, and South Nashville.
WSMV and Axios both report that Nashville is the first market where riders can reach Waymo through both the Waymo and Lyft apps. Waymo also offers Uber access in other cities.
Can I say no to a driverless ride?
Yes. You can decline a Waymo when matched or opt out of autonomous rides entirely in the app. Human drivers continue to serve the area. You don’t need the Waymo app for Lyft matches, though Waymo’s own app still works in Nashville.
Why It Matters to You
If you already use Lyft in central Nashville, you can now try a driverless ride without installing anything new or paying more, and you can turn it off if it’s not for you. Outside the shared service area, including Bellevue, Antioch, and Madison, it isn’t available yet. Availability varies by time and place while the service grows.
How big is the service?
Bloomberg News, as published by Transport Topics, reports that Waymo operates more than 100 vehicles across about 60 square miles in Nashville. Axios notes the service doesn’t yet reach Bellevue, Antioch, or Madison. Those figures come from Bloomberg’s report on the companies’ announcement, and the fleet counts for Lyft matches specifically aren’t published. The service will “continue to grow gradually over the coming weeks.”
What about the depot and the jobs?
Lyft’s fleet-management subsidiary, Flexdrive, plans to open an 80,000-square-foot Waymo depot near Nashville International Airport this fall. Flexdrive will handle charging, cleaning, and maintenance. WSMV reports that Lyft says the depot will add more than 70 full-time local jobs this year. That’s Lyft’s estimate for a depot that, as of the September reports, hadn’t yet opened, and the other outlets we read didn’t repeat it.
Can teens ride?
Waymo announced on September 22, 2026 that teens ages 13 to 17 can ride in Nashville when linked to a parent or guardian’s account. That applies to Waymo’s own app, and we haven’t confirmed it for Lyft.
What isn’t known?
No source we opened gives a Nashville-specific safety record. Waymo’s national crash data covers other cities and shouldn’t be read as describing Nashville. Whether the match reduces impaired driving is unproven, and we found no study on that.
Sources
- WSMV: Nashville Lyft riders can now be matched with driverless Waymo vehicles. Here’s what to know (Sep 9, 2026)
- Transport Topics: Lyft offers Waymo robotaxi rides in Nashville (Sep 9, 2026)
- Axios Nashville: Lyft expands its Waymo robotaxi partnership in Nashville (Sep 9, 2026)
- Waymo blog: Nashville families, your transportation routine just got a lot easier (Sep 22, 2026)