Cruise, the autonomous vehicle startup owned by General Motors, has announced a pause in all of its driverless operations following a series of collisions that led to investigations, a dispute with state regulators, and a suspension of its licenses in California earlier this week. The pause affects the company’s driverless operations in San Francisco, Austin, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and Miami.
According to GM, Cruise has incurred significant losses, with approximately $1.9 billion lost through September of this year, including $732 million in the third quarter alone. These losses were reported on the same day that the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) suspended Cruise’s deployment and testing permits in the state.
The DMV’s decision to suspend Cruise’s permits was prompted by a string of safety concerns and incidents since Cruise received approval in August to conduct robotaxi service in San Francisco. Additionally, the California Public Utilities Commission also suspended a license that allowed Cruise to transport and charge passengers for rides in its robotaxis.
One notable incident involved a pedestrian being struck by a human driver, which caused her to be launched into the path of a Cruise self-driving car. According to DMV records, the autonomous vehicle came to a complete stop and then attempted to perform a pullover maneuver while the pedestrian was underneath the vehicle. The DMV’s suspension orders stated that Cruise’s vehicles are not safe for public operation and may lack the ability to respond appropriately during incidents involving pedestrians.
In response to the situation, Cruise announced that it would proactively pause its driverless operations across all fleets. The company intends to use this time to thoroughly examine its processes, systems, and tools with the goal of rebuilding public trust. Cruise clarified that the pause is not a result of any new on-road incidents, and supervised autonomous vehicle operations will continue.
GM CEO Mary Barra had previously stated that the automaker believes Cruise vehicles are safer than human drivers. She emphasized safety as the key factor for Cruise’s growth and expansion, with plans to work closely with the cities where the company is deploying its autonomous vehicles.
During the pause, Cruise will continue to operate its autonomous vehicles with human safety drivers supervising the drives. GM has declined to comment on the decision to pause operations, referring all inquiries to Cruise. Minority shareholder Honda has yet to provide a statement on the matter.