General Motors (GM)’s autonomous car subsidiary Cruise started offering its autonomous robotaxi service in San Francisco, California during daytime hours. 

The extended service will first be launched for its employees and will be available from 5 am to 4 pm and from 6 pm to 10 pm, with plans to offer the service to the general public in the future. 

Previously, the service was limited to hours between 11 pm and 5 am and was still available for the general public for a fee.

Fares consist of a base fee of USD 5 plus a USD 0.9 per mile and USD 0.4 per minute fee, and added taxes.

Currently, Cruise operates about 70 robotaxis in San Francisco, and a total fleet of around 300 vehicles across its operations in San Francisco, Austin (Texas), and Phoenix (Arizona).

Analyst QuickTake: Cruise opened its fully autonomous robotaxi service (i.e. without a safety driver) to the general public earlier this year, and expanded coverage over time. Initially, the rides were offered free of charge and the company began commercial operations in June of this year. The expansion of service hours announced today signifies the company’s attempt at accelerating its commercial operations.