Council set to decide on Autonomous Vehicle Policy

Culver City’s regulations on the facilities companies like Waymo need to operate driverless vehicles may be set in stone tonight.

The city council is set to vote tonight on implementing proposed Autonomous Vehicle (AV) Fleet Service Facility regulations that would dictate where these AV facilities are allowed in the City. The council implemented a 45-day moratorium on new AV facility building permits while it established the policy details.

This comes in part in response to concerns stemming from an ongoing lawsuit in Santa Monica about the nuisances created by Waymo’s charging depot, a large lot with a series of chargers and other facilities attached. A judge ordered Waymo to stop overnight charging at that station in July, citing “alleged harm to residents [outweighing] the potential harm to Waymo” as justification, according to KTLA 5.

In addition to prohibiting AV vehicles on parcels within 100 feet of land use zones designated for residential development, the proposed regulations also prohibit facilities in the Mixed-Use Downtown Zone. The regulations also address concerns about lighting, noise, and security related to the Santa Monica lawsuit.

Some outside voices have urged a more cautious approach. A Waymo representative spoke during the council’s previous discussion on this item on August 10, urging the city to focus on developing a land use designation for AVs rather than implementing blanket restrictions that drive companies away.

“I can tell you that the industry is not investing or developing charging sites in Santa Monica,” Waymo representative Adam Lane said at the August 10 meeting. “Our problem is more about the message this sends the industry.”

Infrastructure accounts for about 70% of the cost of operating an AV, according to George Kalligeros. Kalligeros is the co-founder and CEO of Aseon Labs, a firm looking to expand AV technologies in ways that minimize impacts on nearby residents.

Aseon Labs is developing individualized automated vehicle maintenance pods as a unique way to introduce AV charging infrastructure into cities. These pods, which are just over 27 feet tall and 13 feet wide, are portable automated maintenance facilities for individual AVs that can be moved between locations and occupy the equivalent of 1.5 parking spaces.

One reason to hold off on blanket zoning changes is to explore potential options like Aseon Labs' pods that are currently being developed in the AV industry, which is facing significant commercial pressure to increase operational capacity.

Several features of the proposed zoning regulation for AV facilities in Culver City could hamper or even prevent companies like Aseon from introducing these technologies to Culver City. Many of the regulations — such as requiring a fence around facilities, needing at least one employee on site 24 hours a day, and requirements for foliage installation to mitigate light impact — stem from concerns about the traditional depot and could impede innovative approaches like Aseon’s proposal, Kalligeros argues.

“It is a bit of a blanket policy and a reaction to the existing models that have been put forward,” Kalligeros told Culver Crescent. “I would challenge operators based on first principles and ask ‘what should not be happening?’”

While Culver City’s choice could affect his company’s ability to operate there, Kalligeros advocates for cities to control these facilities through zoning codes and other tools at their disposal. He acknowledged problems that can come from lights shining from an array of cars or noise generated by vacuums running at high power as standards to expect under the current model.

However, he was more hesitant to support ideas like blanket bans in the Mixed Use Downtown Zone because they could limit new scaling approaches like what is being conceived at Aseon.

“I don’t think the city should compromise,” he said. “Infrastructure companies need to innovate…to serve the city and meet the city’s requirements.”

Companies like Waymo want charging and maintenance depots in central locations for several reasons. Automated vehicles used by these companies must be charged at least three times each day, and trips covering significant distances add “dead miles” that can translate into longer wait times and higher fees for users, along with other potential impacts.

“If we put the infrastructure far away,” Kalligeros said, “then we are just going to increase traffic.”

According to Kalligeros, AVs spend about 44% of their operational time without riders, and 17% traveling to and from depots for maintenance. By providing convenient infrastructure near Culver City residents, these vehicles' utilization time can increase, which can lead to lower overall costs for consumers.

“There is a race right now,” Kalligeros said, “to be cheaper and effectively more equitable and more accessible to the urban dwellers who use their service.”

Culver City has no authority over the overall operation of AVs in the city. The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) manage AV operations.