SF Chronicle – Get-a-Waymo: How a burglar used a robotaxi to flee the scene in a first-of-its kind S.F. case
SF Chronicle reports that there is a new use case for robotaxis: burglary! No driver to identify the perpetrator. Truly brilliant!
Robotaxi.news
Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
Robotaxi.news
Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
News
The news media has expended considerable effort researching and publishing information about the robotaxi business. This channel highlights some of the important articles.
Read MoreSF Chronicle – Get-a-Waymo: How a burglar used a robotaxi to flee the scene in a first-of-its kind S.F. case
NY Times – Blind Waymo Users Revel in the Joy of Riding Alone
NY Times writes an unfortunate article that perpetuates the Waymo marketing "crip-washing" that robotaxis are important for people who are visually impaired.
NY Times – Waymo Suspends Service in Six Cities After Cars Drove Into Flooded Roads
NY Times reports on how Waymo robotaxis do really dumb things when encountering flooded streets. They drive in and any passengers are then stuck!
SF Standard – Waymo suspends all freeway rides over safety issues
SF Standard reports that once again Waymo offers service and then has to rescind it because it wasn't at all safe. This time it turns out that Waymos have been suspended from all freeways and from any flooded roadways. Sure would have been nice if they knew of these problems before inflicting them onto the public.
SF Chronicle – An S.F. doctor sued Waymo for allegedly flagging him as a terrorist. Here’s why he dropped the case
SF Chronicle reports on some serious problems with Waymo customer service.
TechCrunch – Tesla reveals two Robotaxi crashes involving teleoperators
TechCrunch reports that Tesla robotaxis go crashy crashy. And this happened while a teleoperator was remotely driving the vehicles!
San Francisco Chronicle – New poll shows what San Francisco residents really think about Waymo cars
SF Chronicle conducted a poll and found that only 42% consider the robotaxis to be a "good thing". Meanwhile, Brad Templeton does a really weird and inappropriate comparison to acceptance of elevators.
Express News – Waymo recalls robotaxis after vehicle swept away in San Antonio flood
The San Antonio Express News reports that Waymo vehicles were programmed to drive onto flooded roads. This poor decision caused one of the Waymo vehicles to wash downstream. Now Waymo is updating the software on all their 3,800 vehicles to avoid this really stupid idea.
TechCrunch – Uber partner Avride is under investigation for self-driving crashes
TechCrunch reports that the NHTSA is investigating Avride, a partner of Uber, after identifying 16 crashes. Looks like Uber doesn't have a robotaxi solution after all.
Wired – Waymo Is Trying to Crack Down on Solo Kids in Driverless Cars
Wired reports that Waymo is finally trying to address the problem of violating the law by providing service to unaccomanied minors. Though they should have dealt with this months ago when they first clearly knew about this problem.
SF Gate – Illegal cars on Market Street surge after Mayor Lurie welcomes Waymo
SF Gate reports on how Mayor Lurie's bending of the laws and allowing Waymo vehicles on car-free Market Street has completely backfired. A year later Waymo is not providing service on Market Street because there are no adequate locations to drop off or pick up passengers. Instead, Market Street is now plagued by car drivers who wrongly think that all cars are now allowed on the "car-free" portion.
NBC Bay Area – San Jose passenger claims a Waymo drove off with his luggage at the airport
NBC Bay Area reports that a passenger took a Waymo robotaxi to the San Jose airport but then absconded with his luggage. Waymo then made it quite difficult to get the luggage back, even though it was completely their fault.
Bloomberg – China Suspends Autonomous Driving Permits After Baidu Outage
Bloomberg reports that China is having major autonomous vehicle problems. There was a big problem where the Baidu robotaxis simply stopped operating, stranding passengers in dangerous situations.
Wired – Emergency First Responders Say Waymos Are Getting Worse
Wired reports that not all do Waymos interfere with first responders, but it continues to get worse.
SF Standard – Cops can ticket driverless cars now
SF Standard reports that robotaxis, such as Waymos, can now be ticketed in California for their surprisingly numerous traffic violations. Rbbotaxis must also do a better job in not interfering with first responders. Plus, robotaxi companies will finally have to share more information about problems with the DMV.
