"Waymo plans to voluntarily issue a software recall with federal safety regulators related to how its robotaxis operate around school buses, the Alphabet-owned company told TechCrunch. The voluntary software recall will be filed early next week, according to the company. Waymo's decision follows increased scrutiny by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and criticism by officials in Atlanta and Austin over how its robotaxis perform around school buses."
"NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened its initial investigation into Waymo in October after seeing footage of its autonomous vehicle maneuvering around a stopped school bus - with its stop sign extended and lights flashing - that was unloading kids in Atlanta. In that incident, a Waymo robotaxi crossed perpendicularly in front of the school bus from its right side. The autonomous vehicle then turned left around the front of the bus before traveling down the street."
"Other similar incidents popped up in Austin, where the company also operates a robotaxi service with partner Uber. Waymo said as soon as the issue was identified it updated its software on November 17. The company contends this update has meaningfully improved performance to a level better than human drivers in this important area. However, Austin School District officials contend, in a letter available on NHTSA's website, that at least five of these occurred after Waymo said it updated its software. The agency sent a letter December 3 to Waymo asking or more information about its self-driving system and operations following reports from the Austin School District that its robotaxis illegally passed school buses 19 times this year. Regulators requested detailed information about its fifth-generation self-driving system and operations."
Waymo will voluntarily file a software recall with federal safety regulators to address how its robotaxis operate around school buses. The recall filing is expected early next week. The decision follows increased scrutiny from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and criticism from officials in Atlanta and Austin. NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened an inquiry after footage showed a Waymo vehicle maneuvering around a stopped school bus that was unloading children. Waymo updated its software on November 17 and asserts the update improved performance beyond human drivers, while local officials report continued incidents and regulators have requested detailed system information.
Read at TechCrunch
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