Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
Are robotaxis the future? Or instead, the past?
Waymo is fortunate to have a better reputation than the rest, but their incident rate is still not acceptable…
Mission Local reports on the disaster that was Waymo during a power outage. Waymos were stuck all over, blocking traffic and emergency access. This was due to the vehicles not actually being truly autonomous, but instead on relying on cellular communication that apparently Waymo didn't realize doesn't work when power goes out for a while.
KRON4 reports that Waymo still has not answered the basic question of how did that person get into the Waymo. Also, note that the mother violated the safety rules which specifically disallow minors from riding unaccompanied.
Bloomberg reports that Waymo is currently trying to raise $15 Billion in order to have a near $100 Billion valuation. If they have to run over a few cats and dogs to get there, so be it.
San Antonio News reports on a video showing a Waymo blatantly going the wrong way down a one-way frontage road. Better than human drivers???
First time Waymo rider gets quite the fright when their Waymo cuts in front of another driver.
SF Chronicle reports that an odd hitch hiker was found in the back of a Waymo. We have questions ere. First, how old was daughter that the ride was being arranged for?? It is not allowed to send a child alone in a Waymo because clearly unexpected things might happen. Second, with all the sensors and supposed technology how did a really odd person sneak into the vehicle?? Third, wouldn't a human driver have prevented this from ever happening??
NY Times reports on what actually happened when a Waymo robotaxi ran over and killed another animal. It should be noted that the cat did not suddenly dart in front of the vehicle as it pulled away, as Waymo claimed. Instead, a bystander stood in front of the vehicle and tried to lure out the cat, and that the vehicle did not realize that the cat was in danger. A human driver would have of course noticed that a person was trying to get the cat from under the car.
TechCrunch reports on how NHTSA is now investigating 19 cases where a Waymo illegally passed a stopped school bus. 19 times!
CNBC reports that Waymo is now planning on expanding to Baltimore, Pittsburgh and St. Louis.
KQED reports that San Francisco is planning on letting all commercial vehicles on "car-free" Market Street based on completely flawed testing.
CBS Austin reports video evidence of Waymo vehicles illegally passing school buses 19 times. Further evidence that Waymo vehicles simply are not designed to follow traffic safety laws.
NBC News reports on how a Waymo vehicle blithely drove into a police situation where the police had their guns drawn. It is clear that Waymos cannot handle unusual situations, especially when first responders are involved.
While the title is correct, we do need to change course, the opinion piece is just another tech fantasy. The truth is that the data show that the solution for safety is clearly better designed streets and better safety policies. Simply look at Europe to see how safety can be greatly improved through street design, not robotaxis.
Waymo involved in yet another crash, this one killing a dog. The vehicles are clearly not the answer when it comes to improving safety.
SF Chronicle reports on on Supervisor Jackie Fielder of San Francisco is trying to push for state legislation to allow local control of robotaxis. This was motivated by Waymo killing a beloved bodega cat.
