Frozen Waymos backed up San Francisco traffic during a widespread power outage
However, a power outage in San Francisco on Saturday caused a different problem: stranded Waymo vehicles. The company’s autonomous SUVs were sitting still in the streets, causing traffic jams. Some people posted videos of Teslas using their FSD feature to navigate the same streets.
Waymo’s response to the power outage
Meanwhile, Waymo spokesperson Suzanne Philion sent a statement saying, “We have temporarily suspended our ride-hailing services given the broad power outage in San Francisco. We are focused on keeping our riders safe and ensuring emergency personnel have the clear access they need to do their work.”
Why the cars weren’t moving
However, the exact reason why the cars weren’t moving remains unclear. Speculation centered on spotty wireless data connections, with cell towers either down or overloaded by people who no longer had access to Wi-Fi, and/or the street lights that weren’t operating without power. These problems have occurred before, though, as seen in TikTok videos from earlier this year showing Waymos frozen by a malfunctioning street light.
Waymo’s remote assistance program
Moreover, Waymo’s remote assistance program, which reaches out to a human response agent when the car encounters “unique interactions,” may require bandwidth that’s hard to find during a significant power outage. However, in November, the company announced it passed a third-party audit by Tüv Süd, a German tech inspection company that evaluated its remote assistance program against industry best practices.
Conclusion
Consequently, the power outage in San Francisco highlighted the challenges of autonomous vehicles in situations where wireless data connections and street lights are unavailable. In addition, the incident raised questions about the reliability of Waymo’s remote assistance program.
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