General Motors' Cruise Agrees to Reduce Fleet of San Francisco Robotaxis

Reduction Requested by the Department of Motor Vehicles

The state Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has asked for the reduction after a Cruise vehicle, operating without a human driver, collided with an unspecified emergency vehicle on Thursday. In response, the DMV stated that it is currently investigating the incidents involving Cruise vehicles in San Francisco.

Agreement Reached with Cruise

Cruise has agreed to the reduction, stating that it will have no more than 50 driverless vehicles in operation during the day and 150 driverless vehicles in operation at night.

Safety Concerns Raised

This development comes shortly after the California regulators permitted both Cruise and Waymo (a spinoff from Google) to run autonomous robotaxis in San Francisco at all hours. Concerns about safety were sparked due to recurring issues with unexpected stops and erratic behavior exhibited by the vehicles. San Francisco became the first major U.S. city accommodating two fleets of driverless vehicles competing for passengers following the decision made on August 10 by the Public Utilities Commission.

Details of the Collision

According to reports from Cruise, on Thursday around 10 p.m., a Cruise vehicle entered an intersection with a green light and was hit by an emergency vehicle responding to a call. An ambulance transported the passenger, who was in the robotaxi at the time of the collision, to a hospital for treatment. Fortunately, the injuries sustained were not severe.

Additionally, on Thursday night, another collision occurred involving a Cruise vehicle without any passengers in San Francisco. The San Francisco Fire Department did not provide immediate comment on this incident.

The Incident with the Robotaxi

San Francisco, CA - The recent incident involving a Cruise robotaxi and an emergency response vehicle has highlighted the challenges autonomous vehicles face in recognizing and reacting to unexpected situations.

According to Cruise's general manager in San Francisco, Greg Dietrerich, the robotaxi quickly identified the emergency vehicle as it entered its field of view. However, due to the obscured visibility at the intersection caused by surrounding buildings, the autonomous vehicle was unable to detect objects until they were in close proximity.

Dietrerich explained that the autonomous vehicle successfully detected the sound of the emergency vehicle's siren amidst the background noise. However, the situation was further complicated due to the emergency vehicle being in the oncoming lane of traffic, having maneuvered there to bypass a red light.

Despite recognizing the risk of a potential collision, the Cruise vehicle was unable to completely avoid it. It did, however, brake and reduce its speed in an attempt to mitigate the impact.

It is worth noting that Cruise vehicles have already accumulated an impressive 3 million autonomous miles on San Francisco's roads. In addition, over the past seven months alone, they have encountered emergency vehicles more than 168,000 times, indicating a significant level of exposure to these types of situations.

Acknowledging that challenging scenarios are inevitable, Cruise emphasizes their commitment to continuous improvement. They will collaborate closely with regulators and city departments to implement measures aimed at reducing the likelihood of such incidents occurring in the future.

In response to this incident, the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has ordered a reduction in Cruise's fleet until their investigation is concluded and appropriate corrective actions are taken. The DMV underscores its prioritization of public safety and warns that it reserves the right to suspend or revoke testing and deployment permits if there is deemed to be an unreasonable risk to the public.

Autonomous vehicle technology continues to evolve, and incidents like these serve as valuable lessons for the entire industry. By addressing challenges head-on and implementing improvements, the path towards safe and reliable autonomous transportation can be paved.