Waymo's School Bus Situation Just Got Way Worse

"On Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board announced it opened an investigation into the self-driving company over the alarming incidents, and specifically the more than 20 instances reported in Austin, Texas. "Investigators will travel to Austin to gather information on a series of incidents in which the automated vehicles failed to stop for loading or unloading students," the NTSB said in a statement provided to TechCrunch."

"So far, most of the reports have come from Austin, but at least six were reported in Atlanta, Georgia, as well. The Waymos ignored the buses' flashing lights and extended stop arm, an infraction that can bring major penalties for human drivers. No serious collisions or injuries have been reported, but in at least one incident, a Waymo drove right by the students who were disembarking from the bus."

"In December, Waymo issued a voluntary software recall for over 3,000 of its 5th-generation vehicles to address the issue, and Waymo claimed that all the affected vehicles had received the patch in November, before the recall officially went out. But an Austin school district claimed that it had reported at least one violation after the patch had been applied, suggesting it didn't fully address the issue."

The National Transportation Safety Board opened an investigation into Waymo after more than 20 reported robotaxi incidents in Austin in which automated vehicles failed to stop for students loading or unloading from school buses. The probe follows a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation launched last October. Reports include incidents in Atlanta where vehicles ignored flashing lights and an extended stop arm; no serious injuries were reported, though one vehicle drove past disembarking students. Waymo issued a voluntary software recall for over 3,000 fifth-generation vehicles and said a November patch was applied, but at least one post-patch violation was reported. Additional operational errors have included driving on the wrong side of the road and operating on light rail tracks.

Read at Futurism