Waymo is putting its foot firmly on the accelerator. The self-driving unit owned by Alphabet (GOOG) (GOOGL) just snapped up a 5,500-acre autonomous vehicle testing facility in Wittmann, Arizona, from Route 14 Investment Partners, a Delaware entity tied to Apple (AAPL).
Property records filed in Maricopa County show Waymo paid $220 million for the proving ground, with the deal officially landing on June 5. The purchase gives Waymo a much larger playground to fine-tune its technology. The facility packs an 115-acre urban driving course, a 35-acre vehicle dynamics area, a four-mile high-speed oval track, and a dedicated freeway course built specifically for autonomous vehicle testing.