Robotaxi in oncoming traffic: Waymo discusses risk avoidance
Waymo's robotaxis have been on the road for a long time without any major incidents. Now a video shows one of them driving in oncoming traffic for 30 seconds.
Waymo robotaxi on the move in the opposite lane
(Bild: @okgusto)
The US company Waymo has defended a video recording of one of its robotaxis driving in a lane reserved for oncoming traffic in the centre of San Francisco. The vehicle had recognized that there was a risk for a fallen person in the right lane, which is why it "carefully initiated an overtaking manoeuvre into the free oncoming lane to pass the obstacle", the San Francisco Chronicle quotes from a statement. It then remained there "longer than necessary", the Alphabet subsidiary admits. A video shared on Reddit casts doubt on this account. It shows the vehicle travelling almost two blocks in the lane while several vehicles are coming towards it.
Two blocks in oncoming traffic
According to the report, the incident took place on Friday in the South Market district. The one-and-a-half-minute video on Reddit shows the autonomous cab travelling on Toland Street behind a group of people on electric scooters and electric unicycles before crossing the solid line to overtake them in the opposite lane. There, several cars come towards it as it overtakes a number of people. Finally, a person on a unicycle manoeuvres in front of the robotaxi and apparently tries to steer it back into the right lane. This succeeds after it has been driving in the wrong lane for a good 30 seconds. According to the newspaper report, one person was on board throughout the entire time.
According to Waymo, this was a "one-off incident" from which lessons will be learned. Unlike the vehicles of competitor Cruise, Waymo's robotaxis have been on the road in San Francisco in recent months without any major incidents. Since last year, the US metropolis has been a large training ground for the commercial operation of self-driving cars. Waymo and Cruise were allowed to offer rides throughout the city without a safety driver. So far, the vehicles have often been too timid for local people and have tended to block traffic rather than act as **boldly** as the Waymo cab did now. For this reason, attempts have recently been made to adapt the software more closely to the behaviour of people in unconventional situations.
The incident has now occurred in a busy part of town, which is difficult terrain for autonomous cabs, writes the Chronicle. The accident that was Cruise's undoing occurred not far from here. At the beginning of October, one of Cruise's autonomous cabs hit a woman. She was trapped under the vehicle and had to be rescued after the vehicle drove a few meters. During the subsequent investigation, Cruise did not initially disclose all camera footage of the vehicle. As a result, California's Department of Motor Vehicles revoked Cruise's permit to operate driverless robotaxis on the streets of San Francisco in exchange for money.
(mho)