Residents in San Bruno's Belle Air Park say an airport trip has repeatedly ended on their residential street, where Waymo passengers have appeared with suitcases and no clear way to reach San Francisco International Airport.
According to NBC Bay Area, six neighbors described Waymo vehicles dropping off travelers near the 500 block of Seventh Avenue, then stalling or parking long enough to create problems for residents. One neighbor counted 29 Waymos in the area on Sunday, while another counted five yesterday, after residents said the increase began roughly two weeks earlier.
Neighbor Robert Riechel told NBC Bay Area that one traveler carrying three rolling suitcases said, "I'm gonna walk." The neighborhood is about three miles, or roughly 10 minutes by car, from the SFO terminals, but Riechel estimated the walk would take at least 20 minutes along busy San Bruno Avenue; Waymo also told the station that rider feedback and outreach to rider support had remedied the situation.
SFO's Published Waymo Stop Is At The Rental Car Center
The reports are notable because SFO's airport guidance states that Waymo pickups and drop-offs occur at the Rental Car Center's Level 1 curbside on North McDonnell Road. Passengers are directed to use the AirTrain Blue Line between the Rental Car Center and the terminals, and the airport says the service is currently available to select Waymo riders.
Waymo's own SFO launch announcement described the Rental Car Center as the initial airport pickup and drop-off point. That makes the Belle Air Park complaints less a question of where the official airport handoff is supposed to happen and more a question of why some riders are apparently ending up miles away from it, per Waymo.
San Francisco's Robotaxi Growing Pains Add Context
The San Bruno complaints arrive as Bay Area officials continue to wrestle with how autonomous vehicles behave under unusual traffic conditions. KQED reported that more than 30 Waymos became stuck during San Francisco's July Fourth traffic gridlock, prompting a supervisor to seek answers from city departments.
For Belle Air Park residents, the immediate test is straightforward: whether future passengers reach the airport's designated facility rather than a residential block, and whether Waymo vehicles stop using driveways as temporary loading zones.
