Nine additional incidents added to federal investigation of Waymo robotaxi

Federal safety regulators have raised concerns about the safety of Waymo’s self-driving vehicles after discovering nine more incidents in Phoenix and San Francisco. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has opened an investigation into Waymo’s autonomous vehicle software following 22 reports of robotaxis causing crashes and potentially violating traffic safety laws.

The agency has added nine more incidents to the investigation, including reports of Waymo robotaxis colliding with gates, utility poles, and parked vehicles, driving in the wrong lane with oncoming traffic, and entering construction zones. The ODI is worried that these unexpected driving behaviors could increase the risk of crashes, property damage, and injury, especially near pedestrians.

Waymo has until June 11 to respond to the agency’s questions regarding the investigation. This comes as NHTSA has intensified its inquiries into automated driving technology, with a recent investigation into autonomous vehicles operated by Amazon-backed Zoox. The agency opened the investigation after two reports of Zoox’s autonomous-equipped vehicles being rear-ended by motorcycles due to unexpected braking.

The safety of self-driving vehicles continues to be a hot topic as regulators work to ensure the technology is safe for public roads. Waymo and other companies in the autonomous vehicle space will need to address these concerns to maintain public trust in their technology.