Waymo recalled 1,200 robotaxis after repeated crashes with road barriers, filings show
Waymo, the autonomous vehicle subsidiary of Alphabet, recalled more than 1,200 self-driving vehicles late last year following a series of minor collisions with stationary barriers such as gates and chains, according to regulatory filings made public this week.
The move came amid an ongoing federal investigation into the safety of its automated driving system.
The recall affected 1,212 vehicles equipped with Waymo's fifth-generation self-driving software and stemmed from at least 16 reported low-speed incidents between 2022 and late 2024.
According to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, none of the collisions resulted in injuries.
'The issue has been addressed in our latest ADS software, which has been deployed across the fleet,' the company said in a statement.
As of December, Waymo completed the rollout of its sixth-generation software to its entire fleet.
The federal agency launched a preliminary investigation into Waymo's system in May 2024 after receiving reports of vehicles striking visible objects that 'a competent driver would be expected to avoid.'
The agency said its review included 22 such incidents, and the inquiry remains open.
'Waymo has updated the ADS software, free of charge,' the recall notice said. 'All affected vehicles were repaired by December 26, 2024.'
The company said the filings were made public 'to fulfill relevant regulatory reporting obligations.'
The company currently operates more than 1,500 autonomous vehicles in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Austin.
'Waymo provides more than 250,000 paid trips every week in some of the most challenging driving environments in the U.S.,' spokesperson Ethan Teicher said in a statement. 'Our record of reducing injuries over tens of millions of fully autonomous miles driven shows our technology is making roads safer.'
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