San Francisco · AI Safety · White House · Wired
Emergency First Responders Say Waymos Are Getting Worse
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Emergency first-responder leaders told federal regulators in a private meeting last month that they were frustrated with the performance of autonomous vehicles on their streets—that city firefighters, police officers, EMTs, and paramedics are forced to spend time during emergencies resolving issues with frozen or stuck cars.
Key facts
- Today, the company offers driverless rides in parts of 10 US cities, with plans to launch service in 10 more before the end of the year, including London
- We are seeing something interesting: backsliding of some things that had improved upon,” Mary Ellen Carroll, the executive director of San Francisco’s Department of Emergency Management, told
- In Austin, first responders have been frequently stymied by Waymos “freezing up,” said Lieutenant William White, head of Highway Enforcement Command at the Austin Police Department
- Waymo declined to attend the meeting, and two front-row chairs labeled “RESERVED FOR: WAYMO” remained empty throughout the two-hour session
Summary
Officials from San Francisco and Austin, where Waymo has been ferrying passengers without drivers for more than a year, said the vehicles’ performance is getting worse. “We’ve seen some behavior we haven’t seen in a few years … Waymo is frequently now blocking our fire stations from access,” added Chief Patrick Rabbitt, the head of the San Francisco Fire Department. In Austin, first responders have been frequently stymied by Waymos “freezing up,” said Lieutenant William White, head of Highway Enforcement Command at the Austin Police Department. “I believe the technology was deployed too quickly in too vast amounts, with hundreds of vehicles, when it wasn’t ready,” White said.