US Agency Questions Waymo in Self-Driving Vehicle Probe

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Wednesday that it is requesting further information on a series of incidents that raise concerns about the performance of Alphabet’s Waymo self-driving vehicles

In May, the United States Motor Vehicle Safety Agency initiated an inquiry after receiving 22 reports of the company’s robotaxis exhibiting driving conduct that may have violated traffic safety rules or exhibited other “unexpected behavior,” including 17 collisions.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) states numerous incidents “involved collisions with clearly visible objects that a competent driver would be expected to avoid.”

On Wednesday, the government declared that Waymo must respond to a series of comprehensive inquiries by August 6.

These inquiries include the extensive details of the company’s autonomous vehicles’ operations on public roads.

It is interested in determining whether any cars were halted and whether any testing or updates were conducted in response to specific instances.

The NHTSA emphasized that “reports include collisions with stationary and semi-stationary objects such as gates and chains, collisions with parked vehicles, and instances in which the (automated driving system) appeared to disobey traffic safety controls.”

Earlier this month, Waymo declared its “proudness of our performance and safety record over tens of millions of autonomous miles driven.” Waymo should have addressed the statement.

“exhibiting such unexpected driving behaviors may increase the risk of a crash, property damage, and injury,” the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) stated, conveying its apprehension regarding Waymo’s autonomous vehicles.

Additionally, the NHTSA observed that numerous incidents transpired near pedestrians and other road users.

In the past, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated investigations into Amazon.com’s Zoox (AMZN.O) and General Motors Cruise (GM.N), which launched a new tab.

This is the most recent investigation into the performance of self-driving vehicles.

The government is investigating Waymo, which is the initial stage before it could mandate a recall of the vehicles if it determines that they pose an undue safety risk.

In February, Waymo recalled 444 self-driving vehicles following the rapid succession of two minor accidents in Arizona.

The company stated that automated cars could inaccurately predict a towing vehicle’s movement due to a software error.