Waymo’s autonomous-car technology has made great advances over the years to the point where it’s now allowed to offer paid robotaxi rides in select locations in the U.S.
But the development of the technology is ongoing, and the robotaxi rides continue to gather valuable data for Waymo engineers to pore over as they further refine the driverless system to make it as reliable and efficient as possible. Which is why glitches will sometimes occur.
On Wednesday, for example, it emerged that Waymo had to issue a software recall last year for 1,200 of its autonomous vehicles over a risk of crashes with chains, gates, and other roadway barriers, Reuters reported.
The recall, which followed the launch of an ongoing probe into the issue by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last year, involved 1,212 Waymo vehicles powered by the company’s fifth-generation automated driving system software. The issue was resolved by updating the vehicles to the latest version of the software.
According to Reuters, Waymo has knowledge of 16 low-speed collisions with chains, gates, and other barriers between 2022 and late 2024, with no injuries reported.
“We hold ourselves to a high safety standard, and our record of reducing injuries over tens of millions of fully autonomous miles driven shows our technology is making roads safer,” Waymo told Digital Trends in an emailed statement. “NHTSA plays a vital role in road safety, and we will continue to work collaboratively with the agency as part of our mission to be the world’s most trusted driver.”
Waymo’s robotaxis currently serve around 250,000 fully autonomous paid rides a week in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin, Texas. It also has plans to launch in Washington D.C., Atlanta, and Miami, and is even embarking on its first overseas operation, in Japan.
Companies operating self-driving cars on public roads in the U.S. came under greater scrutiny in 2023 after a troubling incident in San Francisco when a pedestrian, who had just been knocked over by a human-driven car, was then driven over by an empty autonomous vehicle operated by Cruise, a startup backed by General Motors. The pedestrian survived, but the incident caused huge turmoil at Cruise that culminated in General Motors announcing last year that it was pulling funding for the project following billions of dollars of investment.
While autonomous vehicles like Waymo’s offer significant potential benefits, the recall highlights the ongoing challenges faced in trying to achieve fully reliable self-driving technology.