What’s it like to use Waymo? We rode in a driverless car — and would try it again.

A few weeks ago, after landing at the Phoenix airport for a journalism conference, our tech-adventurous editor suggested we take a Waymo to our hotel.

Little did we know that Alphabet’s driverless ride-share cars would soon expand to Minneapolis, and we’d be previewing our city’s future.

We had lots of questions. How would we hail it? What would it feel like to be driven by a ghostly chauffer? And, most importantly, would we die in a fiery crash?

The Waymo app was easy to use and told us our car would arrive in about seven minutes. After checking the route, our editor reassured us that we wouldn’t be driving on a freeway — although Waymo cars do in some cases.

We waited for our Waymo in the ride-share pick-up area. Like Uber or Lyft, the Waymo app shows the location and ETA for its cars — all-electric, white Jaguars equipped with sensors and cameras. Seemingly identical Waymos swarmed the curb. Fortunately, our editor noticed one with her initials displayed on one car’s roof, where a taxi’s light would be.

The app warned us we would have five minutes to start our ride after the car arrived. We unlocked the doors from the app and lifted our roller bags into the trunk, a task that some riders might find difficult without a human driver’s help.

We were greeted by a friendly, robotic “Hello” and music that resembled a yoga-class playlist as we climbed in. Waymos can accommodate up to four riders; no one can sit in the driver’s seat. There was plenty of legroom in the back because our nonexistent driver had the seat pulled forward.

The automated female voice offered a few riding tips, including not to touch the steering wheel or pedals. Meanwhile, we acted like tourists in a futuristic country, wildly shooting video to share with family and friends.

There was very little traffic along our route, though we did encounter four other Waymos stopped at a red light. Our vehicle didn’t seem to make any unnecessary lane changes, unlike impatient New York cabbies darting through rush hour.

The car did make an awkward, herky-jerky stop when a plastic bag skittered across our path like a tumbleweed. A human driver would have ignored it, but we appreciated the Waymo erring on the side of caution. We wondered how it would perform in a Minnesota winter.

On our return trip to the airport, when the Waymo picked us up outside the hotel, we questioned its judgment to stop in the middle of the street rather than pull into a parking space —although plenty of rogue drivers do the same thing in Uptown.

Both Waymo trips took about 20 minutes to drive 8 miles and cost roughly $20, including a $3 airport tax, cheaper than the price Uber quoted us.

Putting those ethical considerations aside, we noticed some clear tradeoffs. On one hand, a human driver can be a welcoming first touch in a new city and share their must-visits. And in a world of fewer spontaneous interactions, chit-chat with strangers can bring a greater sense of connection.

On the other hand, some ride-share drivers have made passengers feel uncomfortable or unsafe. In Phoenix, a journalist friend was taken aback by her Uber driver’s insensitive comments about George Floyd when she told him she was from Minneapolis.