SAN FRANCISCO — Waymo on Sunday expanded its commercial driverless ride-hailing service into a new US metropolitan market, extending its footprint beyond Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin. The Alphabet subsidiary opened public bookings through its app.

The expansion followed Waymo's release of updated safety figures showing its autonomous vehicles were involved in 82% fewer injury-causing crashes than human drivers over comparable mileage. The company published the data as part of its ongoing safety transparency reporting, drawing on tens of millions of driverless miles.

Waymo has used the crash statistics to press the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for streamlined rules governing driverless deployment. The company aims to demonstrate that scaled autonomous operations reduce roadway injuries and deaths.

The move intensifies competition with Tesla, which has pursued a rival robotaxi strategy, and comes as US cities weigh how to regulate driverless fleets on public streets. Local transport officials in several markets have raised questions about congestion, emergency-vehicle interactions and jobs for human drivers.

Waymo said it would gradually increase vehicle availability in the new market over the coming weeks, mirroring the phased rollouts it has used elsewhere before opening service fully to the public.