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US regulator expands investigation into Waymo’s autonomous vehicles

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The vehicles were involved in traffic violations and collisions

What’s the matter

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has expanded its investigation into Waymo, Alphabet Inc.’s autonomous vehicle subsidiary.

This decision follows the identification of additional incidents in which Waymo cars were involved in collisions or potentially violated traffic laws.

Since the preliminary evaluation began on May 13, NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation has discovered nine additional incidents with a similar pattern.

Several Waymo vehicles involved in multiple collisions

About 17 Waymo vehicles were reportedly involved in collisions with objects such as chains, gates and parked cars.

In addition to these incidents, NHTSA has cited five cases in which Waymo’s automated driving system appeared to violate traffic laws.

These violations included driving in opposite lanes to nearby oncoming traffic, further increasing concerns about autonomous vehicles.

NHTSA expresses concern about Waymo’s driving behavior

The NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation has expressed concern about these incidents.

In a letter to Waymo, the defect agency said it was “concerned that ADS-equipped vehicles exhibiting such unexpected driving behavior could increase the risk of accidents, property damage and injuries.”

Some of these new incidents were reported by Waymo itself under a 2021 standing order that requires automakers to notify regulators of accidents involving automated driving systems.

Increased control of autonomous vehicles by regulators

The expanded investigation into Waymo is part of a larger trend toward increased scrutiny by road safety authorities of both driver assistance systems and more advanced autonomous vehicles.

Other companies facing similar investigations include Tesla’s Autopilot, Ford’s BlueCruise and Amazon’s Zoox.

In October, NHTSA also launched an investigation into possible deficiencies in the autonomous driving system of Cruise, the self-driving unit of General Motors Co.

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