Waymo’s robotaxi expansion has run into a weather problem, as the Alphabet-owned autonomous vehicle company paused operations in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio after its vehicles struggled with flooded roads and severe rain conditions.
TL;DR
- Waymo paused service in four cities after robotaxis faced trouble around heavy rain and flooded roads.
- The company also temporarily suspended freeway rides in the U.S. while updating its software.
- The latest pause follows a recall of about 3,800 robotaxis over flood-related and construction zone safety concerns.
- NHTSA is aware of the Atlanta incident and is communicating with Waymo.
Waymo Pauses Robotaxi Operations After Atlanta Flood Incident
Waymo has paused robotaxi service in Atlanta after one of its unoccupied autonomous vehicles drove into a flooded street on Wednesday and got stuck for nearly an hour.
The vehicle was later recovered and removed from the scene. Waymo said the incident happened during intense rainfall and added that it has paused operations in the city while it works on a fix.
“Safety is Waymo’s top priority, both for our riders and everyone we share the road with. During a period of intense rain yesterday in Atlanta, an unoccupied Waymo vehicle encountered a flooded road and stopped,” the company said in a statement.
The Atlanta service was offered through Waymo’s partnership with Uber. The company said street operations elsewhere remain unaffected, though it is reviewing how its vehicles behave around certain construction zones and flooded roadways.
Waymo Expands Weather-Related Pause To Dallas, Houston, And San Antonio
Atlanta is not the only city affected. Waymo also paused service in San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston as severe weather moved across Texas.
A Waymo spokesperson said Dallas and Houston were paused out of an abundance of caution due to forecasted severe weather. The growing list means Waymo has now stopped service in four cities because of rain and flooding concerns.
That matters because Waymo has been expanding its robotaxi footprint at a faster pace, just as rivals such as Tesla and Amazon’s Zoox increase their own autonomous mobility efforts.
Waymo Temporarily Suspends Freeway Robotaxi Rides In The U.S.
Alongside the city pauses, Waymo has also temporarily suspended robotaxi service on freeways in the United States.
Freeway rides had been available in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Miami. Waymo said it is using recent technical lessons to improve its software before bringing those routes back.
“We have temporarily paused freeway operations, as we work to integrate recent technical learnings into our software and expect to resume these routes soon,” a Waymo spokesperson said.
The company said it is specifically evaluating and improving performance around some types of construction zones, while also working on better handling of flooded roads.
Why Waymo’s Flood Recall Is Back In Focus
The latest disruption follows Waymo’s recall of about 3,800 robotaxis in the U.S. earlier this month.
The recall was issued after Waymo identified a risk that its vehicles could enter flooded roads with higher speed limits, creating safety concerns. Documents released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Waymo had not completed a “final remedy” at the time.
Instead, the company sent an update that placed restrictions “at times and in locations where there is an elevated risk of encountering a flooded, higher-speed roadway.”
However, the Atlanta incident suggests those restrictions may not have been enough.
Waymo said that flooding in Atlanta developed before the National Weather Service had issued a flash flood warning, watch, or advisory, and that such alerts are only one part of the broader signal set it uses to prepare vehicles for poor weather.
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NHTSA Keeps Watch As Waymo Faces Broader Safety Scrutiny
The Atlanta flood incident has also drawn regulatory attention.
“NHTSA is aware of this incident, is in communication with Waymo, and will take appropriate action if necessary,” a spokesperson for the safety regulator said.
This is not Waymo’s only safety headache. The company has previously faced scrutiny over robotaxis illegally passing stopped school buses, even after it shipped a fix meant to address the issue.
That behavior is part of one active investigation involving both NHTSA and the National Transportation Safety Board. On May 15, NHTSA sent Waymo a second document request after saying the company’s first response required further data and information.
A separate set of investigations from NHTSA and NTSB involves a January 23 incident in Santa Monica, California, where a Waymo robotaxi hit a child. Waymo has said the vehicle braked to around six miles per hour before impact and that the child suffered minor injuries.
For now, Waymo’s challenge is clear. Its robotaxis can keep expanding, but only if they can better understand when a road is not just wet, but unsafe to enter.
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