Waymo’s recent crop of safety issues have led it to halt service in another city. The Alphabet-owned company has temporarily shut down service in Atlanta after one of its robotaxis drove into a flooded intersection.
As a local NBC affiliate shared in a report, the self-driving car was trapped in the intersection for roughly an hour following heavy rain in the city. In a statement, Waymo explained that the National Weather Service hadn’t had time to issue one of the flash flood alerts the company depends on to help cars avoid floods. There were no passengers at the time.
Similar incidents have been reported
Waymo also issued recalls
The move comes weeks after Waymo froze service in San Antonio following similar incidents, including one where flooding carried away an unoccupied car. Waymo decided to issue a recall for all of its 3,791 robotaxis through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in late April over the problem.
Last week, Waymo pushed a software update to its vehicles that restricted where they could drive when there was an “elevated risk of encountering a flooded, higher-speed roadway,” according to NHTSA documents.
The Atlanta incident suggests the current update isn’t enough. However, Waymo also said in the recall that it was still developing more but unspecified “safeguards.”
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Not Waymo’s first safety issue
Children and school buses have been problematic
Credit: Waymo
Waymo, like other robotaxi operators, has faced safety criticisms before. Its driverless cars have accrued parking tickets and other violations in situations they couldn’t understand. They will sometimes come to a complete stop as a safety precaution, but this can block traffic or risk collisions.
Officials at the NHTSA and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are already investigating two problems with Waymo machines. In January, a robotaxi in Santa Monica struck a child at low speed, leading to minor injuries. There have also been multiple times when Waymo cars illegally passed stopped school buses, putting more children at risk.
Nothing new for robotaxis
These problems have been historically difficult to avoid. While Waymo and rivals routinely train their cars with both real-world tests and simulations, there are still edge case scenarios that the autonomous driving systems don’t anticipate. While the technology is improving, it’s worth noting that most robotaxi services tend to be in warm, stable climates where weather hazards are less likely to complicate navigation.
Source: 10News
