Title: California Authorities Demand General Motors to Temporarily Halt Cruise Robotaxi Operations Following Two Collisions
Subtitle: Safety concerns arise as autonomous vehicles encounter accidents, including one involving an active fire truck
San Francisco, California – California authorities have urged General Motors to immediately suspend the operations of its Cruise robotaxis after two collisions involving autonomous vehicles occurred last week in San Francisco. Notably, one of the accidents involved a fire truck. Following the incidents, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has initiated an investigation into the matter.
The DMV stated that it is actively working with Cruise and law enforcement officials to gather all the facts surrounding the collisions. As a precautionary measure, the DMV has requested Cruise to reduce its active fleet by 50% until the investigation is complete and appropriate corrective actions are implemented to enhance road safety.
Consequently, Cruise, the self-driving subsidiary of General Motors, can now have a maximum of 50 driverless cars operating during the day and 150 at night, according to the DMV’s restrictions.
Responding to the DMV’s request, Cruise has agreed to adhere to the fleet reduction and is currently conducting an internal investigation into the fire truck collision. A spokesperson from Cruise affirmed their commitment to ensuring the safe deployment of autonomous vehicles.
These accidents raise concerns about the potential risks associated with driverless technology. While Cruise’s self-driving vehicle accurately detected the fire truck and identified the risk, it was unable to avoid the collision. One passenger suffered minor injuries in the incident and was transported to the hospital for treatment, said the company.
In another collision, a vehicle ran a red light at high speed and made contact with a Cruise autonomous vehicle. However, there were no passengers in the Cruise vehicle, and the driver of the other vehicle was treated and released at the scene, according to Hannah Lindow, a Cruise spokesperson.
It remains uncertain whether these accidents could have been averted if a human driver were present instead of an autonomous vehicle. However, they are not the only incidents involving Cruise’s driverless cars in San Francisco last week. On a separate occasion, one of Cruise’s driverless taxis accidentally veered into a construction area, halting in wet concrete.
These incidents highlight the challenges associated with ensuring the safety of fully driverless passenger vehicles. General Motors acquired Cruise Automation in 2016, solidifying its position in the autonomous vehicles market. However, many companies have since scaled back or abandoned their driverless car projects due to the complexity and cost involved in perfecting the technology.
Uber and Lyft, prominent ridesharing companies, have sold their autonomous vehicle units in recent years. Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a staunch advocate of autonomous vehicle technology, has yet to fully deliver on his promise. While Tesla offers a “full self-driving” feature as a beta-test for $15,000, drivers are required to remain alert, keep their hands on the steering wheel at all times, and maintain control of the vehicle.
The investigation into the accidents involving Cruise’s autonomous vehicles is ongoing, shedding light on the obstacles that companies in the automotive industry face as they strive to achieve safe and successful deployment of autonomous vehicles.
Sources:
– CNN: California Authorities Request General Motors’ Cruise to Halt Some Robotaxis After Crashes – CNN
– Twitter: @Cruise’s tweet confirming the incident – Twitter.com
– CNN: California DMV Reduces General Motors’ Cruise Self-Driving Fleet After Two Crashes – CNN