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<\/div>\nAlphabet\u2019s Waymo is recalling more than 1,200 self-driving vehicles to update software and address risks of collisions with chains, gates and other roadway barriers after U.S. auto safety investigators opened a probe last year.<\/p>\n
The recall affects 1,212 Waymo vehicles operating on the company\u2019s fifth-generation automated driving system software, the company said.<\/p>\n
Waymo has over 1,500 vehicles on the road across San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin, Texas, and is running more than 250,000 fully autonomous paid rides a week. It plans to add service in Atlanta, Miami and Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
Waymo said it was aware of 16 collisions with chains, gates and other barriers between 2022 and late 2024. But the incidents did not result in any injuries, according to a report filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.<\/p>\n
NHTSA opened an investigation<\/a> into the performance of Waymo self-driving vehicles in May 2024 after reports of its robotaxis exhibiting driving behavior that potentially violated traffic safety laws.<\/p>\n The agency said several incidents under investigation \u201cinvolved collisions with clearly visible objects that a competent driver would be expected to avoid.\u201d The investigation remains open.<\/p>\n The issue has been resolved with a software update to its automated driving system begun in November and deployed across the entire fleet by the end of December, Waymo said.<\/p>\n \u201cWaymo provides more than 250,000 paid trips every week in some of the most challenging driving environments in the U.S.,\u201d the company said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n \u201cOur record of reducing injuries over tens of millions of fully autonomous miles driven shows our technology is making roads safer,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n In February 2024, Waymo recalled 444 self-driving vehicles after two minor collisions in quick succession in Arizona, saying a software error could result in automated vehicles inaccurately predicting the movement of a towed vehicle.<\/p>\n Self-driving vehicle companies, including Waymo and General Motors\u2019 Cruise, have come under increased regulatory scrutiny following a 2023 incident where a pedestrian was seriously injured by a Cruise vehicle. GM cut Cruise\u2019s funding and folded it into its broader operations.<\/p>\n Waymo recalled more than 670 vehicles in June after one of them struck a wooden utility pole in Phoenix in May 2024. The company said the automated driving software could fail to avoid a pole or similar object.<\/p>\n Last week, Amazon.com\u2019s self-driving unit, Zoox, agreed to recall 270 driverless vehicles after an unoccupied robotaxi was involved in a crash with a passenger car in Las Vegas, Nevada. No one was injured.<\/p>\n Topics<\/span> Personal Auto<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Was this article valuable?<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n