St. Paul City Council approves plan to study impact of robotaxis on workforce, public safety

Twin Cities News St. Paul City Council approves plan to study impact of robotaxis on workforce, public safety By Reg Chapman Reg Chapman Weekend Anchor Reg Chapman joined WCCO-TV in May of 2009. He came to WCCO from WNBC-TV in New York City where he covered an array of stories for the station including the Coney Island plane crash, the crane collapse on the city's east side, 50 shots fired at motorist Sean Bell by New York Police, and a lacrosse team assault at Fairfield High School in Connecticut. Read Full Bio Reg Chapman October 14, 2026 / 5:32 PM CDT / CBS Minnesota Add CBS News on Google Twin Cities leaders on both sides of the Mississippi River want to press the brakes before driverless vehicles hit the road. Many rideshare drivers believe that robotaxis will take their jobs. St. Paul city leaders are trying to get ahead of the rideshare debate. They want St. Paul's transportation to be shaped by community members, not by big tech."This is a question of who we value as a city. Do we ensure thousands of drivers and workers can support their families and put food on the table or are we siding with billionaire taxi CEO's who think they can ignore our regulations and undercut workers to pad their pockets," said HwaJeong Kim. The St. Paul City Council will recommend community protections in advance of autonomous cars coming to the capitol city.No timeline was put on resolution but the author, Rebecca Noecker, says it's more important to make sure the study is done right. They'll look at the impact of these vehicles on transportation workers, public safety, emergency response and how they work in winter weather. "I would expect a full study would take certainly no less than six months or maybe up to a year to be done to completion," Noecker said. St. Paul is also looking across the river at Minneapolis. The Minneapolis City Council approved an ordinance earlier this month that mandates a human monitor in driverless cars."It could be a driver in one of those cars. Don't let innovation leave us behind. We're here. We want to be here," said rideshare driver Mardis Washington.  It's something Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey opposes. He vetoed the ordinance."We know from a local state study that about 10,000 drivers in our state pay their rent and feed their families with income that they make driving rideshare," said Ward 2 City Council Member Robin Wonsley. Minneapolis council members want to protect jobs and say safety is a big issue when driverless cars are on city streets.Waymo, the Silicon Valley-based company, calls the move by Minneapolis a defacto ban.Its cars have been seen throughout the Twin Cities mapping routes.Thursday, the Minneapolis City Council will vote to uphold Frey's veto or override it. In: St. Paul Waymo Minneapolis Featured Local Savings St. Paul council president wants robotaxi rules in place before big tech arrives MPS not moving forward with plans to close several schools HOURCAR users rally to save car-sharing service ahead of shutdown St. Paul sues Maplewood over police firearm training facility Date set for NYC Council to vote on horse carriage ban Stockton City Council votes to remove Jason Lee as vice mayor 4 sets of twins born at Fairfield's NorthBay Medical Center NYC Council to pass bill phasing out Central Park horse carriages