In San Francisco , tech “ break ” is often border as honest . It ’s the goal of “ move tight , go bad thing ” jump - ups and Silicon Valley entrepreneur : innovation , paradigm shifts , etc … . But , so far , it ’s in the original mother wit of the watchword that ego - drive hack companies Cruise and Waymo are disrupt San Francisco ’s street .
The driverless vehicle have cause legion delays for the city ’s public transportation system system . Dashcam videos show the orange and blanched branded cars interfering with bus and lightsome - rail routes via unexpected stops , badly - notify turn , and other illogical activity , asfirst reported by Wiredon Monday . The report card follow a late hit take a Cruise car and a SF public bus that extend to a software - based reminiscence before this month .
Cruise ’s driverless cars , operate as a subsidiary of General Motors , and interchangeable robotaxis fromAlphabet - own Waymocaused at least 12 report incidents involving San Francisco ’s Municipal Transport Agency ( nicknamed Muni ) in the less than seven months between September 2022 and the start of March 2023 . Eight of these were capture on TV , per Wired . In total , the documented interactions between transit and the high - tech taxis resulted in more than 80 instant of delays for Muni passenger .
Cruise has been operating a fleet of driverless cars in San Francisco for almost a year now. The autonomous vehicles have caused more than a few headaches for public transit operators and passengers.Photo:Tada Images(Shutterstock)
The true telephone number of incidents and delayed moment may be much eminent , the report noted . Between May and December 2022 , driverless cars in San Francisco reportedly made 92 unplanned stops , more than 80 of which were along roads that serve as transportation routes .
Inone videoobtained by Wired , a Waymo car check in the midriff of a street on March 5 . The AV is face a public bus with its dashcam transcription . The busbar has nowhere to go . The Waymo vehicle stay where it is , stopped between parked cars , until in the end one of the troupe ’s human , roadside assistance gang members arrived . “ This one not smart yet . Not impertinent . Not practiced , ” the bus number one wood reportedly said over their radio set to Muni management .
Inanother videofrom September 30 , 2022 , a Cruise fomite drives into an intersection and only narrowly stop before to the full interbreed into the lineal path of a light - rail train . Still though , the Cruise car bar part of the light - track cart track . If the transportation hustler had n’t also managed to stop over in the snick of fourth dimension , a collision clearly would ’ve take place . Inside the automobile , coincident footage shows riders give sideways by the disconnected braking . Other videos also bewitch the AVs blocking light - rails logical argument for minute on end until finally human drivers are scream in to re - locate the self - drive cars away from the scene of their fault .
One otherrecording showsa Waymo car making a remaining turn at an Cartesian product where it has a diaphragm sign while a bus approach the same crossing , where it should be able-bodied to progress without stopping . The bus drivers slow down to accommodate the Waymo fomite — though Waymo enjoin Wired this slow was n’t necessary , ground on the company ’s after - the - fact virtual computer simulation . consort to Waymo , the bus could ’ve retain locomote at its usual speed and no accident would ’ve hap . Personally though , watching the television , I am glad the double-decker did n’t take the risk and opted to slow down down .
“ Safety is our mission and top anteriority as we develop and deploy this engineering . We treat every event in earnest by enquire it to realize what take place and key out ways to do even advantageously as we safely descale our technology and operations , ” a Waymo representative told Gizmodo via electronic mail .
In an email to Gizmodo , Cruise re - iterate a call it ’s made elsewhere before , including to Wired . The company says that their technical school errs on the side of caution and stops when there ’s no clear , safe other option .
“ Improving route safe is our chief mission – not only for Cruise passengers , but for everyone we share the route with , ” compose Hannah Lindow , a company spokesperson , in an email to Gizmodo .
Yet , though guard may be the goal , it ’s clearly not always the realism . On March 23 , a Cruise fomite crashed into a Muni bus . The company has said no one was injured , and name the incident as a “ fender bender , ” in a subsequentblogpost . In reception , last calendar week , Cruise instituteda voluntary software recallon 300 of its fomite in the wake of the hit , to update how its cars react to double - length , articulated coach .
Cruise begin itsdriverless , commercial rides in San Francisco in June 2022 , make the metropolis ’s greenlight to pick up paying passenger during nighttime hours in certain areas . The fleet start out with 30 vehicle , but the current number of automobile it has in SF is unclear , and the party decline to pop the question details on fleet size . Cruise was the first AV company to get such driverless favorable reception , and stay the only operator in the city with its particularCalifornia Public Utitlities Commission designation . Waymo also operates driverless vehicles in San Francisco for money , as of November , but pursue a slightly different licence flight and ca n’t yet charge for rider - only trips . The party says it has a few hundred Ab circulating SF ’s streets . Waymo is currently undergo the review process for the full CPUC Driverless Deployment Permit , a Cruise spokesperson specify .
Since last summer , existent accidents involving Cruise and Waymo vehicle seem to have been rare , but there ’ve been multiple incident of the carsbehaving erraticallyandclogging up streets . And the companies have done their best to befog the reliable bell of their tech . Waymosuccessfully suedto be able to keephiding its autonomous vehicle safetyand clash data point .
Obviously , human machine driver make lots of mistakes too . Far too often , the result can be deadly . But the introduction of AVs to SF ’s ( andAustin ’s and Phoenix ’s ) streets have yet to make a prick in route safety . Instead , for now , the vehicles appear to be complicating things — adding yet another possible cause for custody - ups into the already engorged city grids .
“ We are always meliorate our applied science and apologize to anyone inconvenienced by these incident – – but it is important they are view against the deeply troubling condition quo of accidental injury and route deaths in San Francisco , ” Lindow told Gizmodo . “ AVs are still novel and sure deportment understandably attract a fortune of tending , but we ’re proud of our safe criminal record and remain committed to doing everything possible to make roads safer . ”
But maybe , the thing that would make the roads safe , is n’t self-directed car . Perhaps it ’s still justfewer cars , overall .
Update 2025-02-07 , 2:50 P.M. ET : This Emily Price Post has been updated with extra information from Waymo and Cruise spokespeople , and to clarify the specific difference in the two company ’s permitting situations .
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