Driverless taxis augur a new road ahead. Are we ready to accept them?

From the spinning jenny to steam engines, from telephones to airplanes, every new leap forward in technology in the past 200 years has initially been greeted with some skepticism, if not trepidation.

The current emergence of driverless taxis is certainly no exception.

While promising to revolutionize urban transport with greater efficiency and lower costs, these robotic vehicles face some challenges, including safety and reliability, and they threaten to displace millions of people who make their living behind the wheel.

As cities around the world, from Phoenix in the US to Tokyo and the city of Wuhan in China, autonomous taxis are becoming frequent sights as they are given the go-ahead to begin commercial operation.

Baidu's Apollo Go, also known as "Go Carrot" in Chinese, has a fleet of some 400 driverless taxis and has reported explosive growth in people wanting to hire them since its citywide 24/7 operation began in March.

Some vehicles complete more than 20 rides a day, matching the average daily workload of a human taxi driver. User satisfaction is also high. The Apollo Go app receives an average rating of 4.9 out of 5.

Investors, too, seem awed by the new technology. Last week, Baidu shares listed on the Nasdaq in New York jumped as much as 8.5 percent, and the stock soared 13 percent on the Hong Kong Exchange, fueled by investor interest in its Apollo Go robotaxi service in China.

General public opinion, however, remains mixed. Critics voice concerns about job displacement, insufficient regulation and safety issues.

Malfunctions and the lack of a driver make some passengers feel uneasy. There have been instances of traffic jams caused by autonomous vehicles unable to yield to each other.

Still, overall sentiment leans toward optimism. Supporters highlight the convenience and lower costs of autonomous taxis, compared with public transport and traditional taxis. They point to the robotaxis' cleaner interiors, customized music, consistent air conditioning and absence of the sometimes awkward need to converse with drivers.

"The robotaxi is so much cheaper," Chen Li, a Wuhan resident, shared on the social media platform Red. "I took a 15-kilometer ride for just 7.2 yuan (99 US cents). It's slow sometimes, but I don't mind. It's safe, and I save a lot of money."

Another resident, Wang Jun, was less enthusiastic.

"I appreciate the technology and the lower cost, but there are times when a robotaxi is too slow or takes a longer route," he said. "It's frustrating when I'm in a hurry."

Booking an Apollo Go via an app is similar to the procedure on any mainstream ride-hailing service, but passengers must enter the last four digits of their phone number on a small screen by the rear door to unlock the car.

The front passenger seat of a robotaxi is off-limits, and only three passengers are allowed in the back. They are separated from the front seat by a transparent partition to prevent any interference with the driving controls.

Screens behind the front seats display the route, allow temperature control and music selection. Apollo Go prompts passengers to fasten their seatbelts before departure and requires manual confirmation on a screen to start the journey.

Apollo Go vehicles currently offer two options in Wuhan: autonomous cars with a driver and cars that are completely driverless. For manned autonomous vehicles, the driver is there in case of problems or accidents.

Beijing-based Baidu's first-quarter financial statement shows fully driverless orders now exceed 70 percent, with expectations of it reaching 100 percent in coming quarters.

The company predicts Apollo Go will break even in Wuhan by the end of 2024 and become profitable by 2025, the first such service to provide a specific profitability timeline.

Nationwide, Apollo Go now operates test taxi services in 11 cities, including fully driverless cars in Beijing, Wuhan, Chongqing, Shenzhen and Shanghai.

According to Baidu data as of April 19, Apollo Go had provided over 6 million rides nationwide.

Beijing is set to introduce legislation supporting the use of autonomous vehicles in urban public transport, ride-hailing and car rentals.

In Shanghai, four companies received the first permits for driverless intelligent connected vehicles at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference on July 4.

The legislative momentum is coupled with governmental support for pilot projects integrating smart vehicles, roads and cloud services in 18 domestic cities, including Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.

China is predicted to become the world's largest market for autonomous people-movers within the next 5 to 10 years.

Regular taxi drivers are understandably alarmed by the fast emergence of driverless competition. Already complaining about dwindling income in a market where supply exceeds demand, many see an end to jobs they jumped into during boom times.

China has over 7 million registered ride-hailing drivers and nearly 3 million regular taxi drivers.

"Driving a taxi was never easy, but it was honest work," said Li Wei, 45, who has been a taxi driver in Wuhan for the past 15 years. "I could support my family, send my kids to school and pay the bills. But now, things are changing so fast."

Li said his daily earnings have dropped sharply with the rapidly rising popularity of ride-hailing services since 2015.

"Before, I could make around 300 yuan a day, sometimes more on busy days," he explained. "Now, I'm lucky if I bring home 200 yuan. It could become less with the coming of robot taxis."

Many of his counterparts share similar tales of woe on a WeChat group of over 200 ride-hailing drivers nationwide.

"We can't compete with them," a driver from Shandong Province told Shanghai Daily. "Robotaxis don't need breaks, they don't get tired and they don't have families to feed. How are we supposed to survive?"

Experts in the field caution that autonomous driving technology still faces hurdles.

Zhang Xiaorong, director of the Deep Technology Research Institute, noted that handling complex road conditions and extreme weather remains a challenge for autonomous vehicles.

He said replacing human drivers entirely will take more time and technological improvements.

In a July 7 accident, a driverless Apollo Go taxi was tardy in response and hit a pedestrian crossing against a red light on a Wuhan street.

Wuhan citizens have reported issues online, including driverless taxis stalling at green lights, entering intersections on red lights and hesitating when turning, leading to traffic jams.

Apollo Go vehicles are programmed to stop automatically at pedestrian crossings and traffic lights if someone crosses the road. Wuhan rider Chen said she once experienced a sudden, hard braking that startled her on a robotaxi trip.

"Passengers prone to motion sickness might find the ride uncomfortable," she said.

He Xiaopeng, chairman of Guangzhou-based XPeng Motors, said on July 11 that though the robotaxi trend is hot now, it's clear that capabilities, regulations and business models need more fine-tuning.

Apart from Baidu, other companies are also heavily investing in robotaxis.

Pony.ai has developed the necessary technology for large-scale commercialization of autonomous vehicles and plans to operate in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

The ride-hailing company Ruqi Mobility has integrated robotaxi services into its initial public offerings in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. It plans to use a significant portion of its share-sale proceeds to further develop autonomous driving technology.

T3 Mobility Chief Executive Cui Dayong is predicting that widespread commercialization of robotaxis could occur within five years. He emphasized that significant cost reductions could mark a breakthrough in the industry's commercial viability.

China is not only testing autonomous taxis but also exploring other applications, including freight transport, delivery services and street cleaning.

In Shanghai, autonomous trucks are being deployed to transport goods to and from ports.

In Beijing, Meituan's autonomous delivery vehicles are becoming a common sight, handling thousands of deliveries daily.

Shenzhen is testing autonomous street cleaning vehicles, aiming to reduce labor costs and improve urban cleanliness.

Autonomous taxis are also being tested and deployed in several cities worldwide. Companies like Waymo and Cruise in the United States, nuTonomy in Singapore, ZMP and DeNA in Japan, Navya in France and Yandex in Russia are among the pioneers in these efforts.

Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk announced on his social media platform X that plans for his company to launch its robotaxi have been postponed to October from August 8. Musk is exploring the idea of entering the Chinese market with the driverless cars.

Gu Dasong, executive director of the Traffic Law and Development Research Center at Southeast University, stressed the importance of balancing technological progress with social equity.

The transition to autonomous vehicles should consider the impact on existing drivers and should be accompanied by transparent and serious regulation, he told The Paper, a leading digital media outlet based in Shanghai.

He cited Britain's Locomotive Act of 1865, which mandated that every motor vehicle on public roads had to be manned by three individuals. One of them was required to walk in front of the vehicle, waving a red flag to warn others of its approach.

Baidu Vice President Wang Yunpeng said the original intention of developing driverless cars was not to compete with human drivers, but rather to offer a new mode of transportation that better serves the public.

But for taxi drivers like Li, the road ahead looks grim.

"I just want to make a living and take care of my family," he said. "But it's getting harder and harder. I hope there's a way for us to co-exist with this new technology."