NHTSA opens recall query as Waymo robotaxis kept passing stopped school buses after software fix
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened a recall query into Waymo's robotaxi software, after reports that its vehicles kept driving past school buses with extended stop signs and flashing red lights. According to a November 6 filing, most of the reported incidents happened after Waymo deployed a software update meant to fix the problem. The agency's Office of Defects Investigation is assessing whether the remedy is adequate, and the recall query follows an October 2025 investigation triggered by footage from Atlanta. Waymo says it has made significant improvements and has received no citations since March 2026, while the agency is looking at post-remedy incidents. No injuries are reported in the article, and no cyber component is involved.
Detalhes técnicos
- Affected behavior: Waymo vehicles passing stopped school buses that have their stop arms out and lights flashing. In the Atlanta incident that started the first probe, a robotaxi crossed in front of the bus from its right side and then turned left around the front of it (techcrunch.com).
- Remedy timeline: Waymo said a software update was completed for all affected vehicles on November 17, 2025. NHTSA's filing states that most incidents occurred after that update.
- Scope: A search snippet from tipranks.com reports that the recall query covers 2,985 Waymo vehicles. The NHTSA filing itself was not retrieved during research, so this figure is taken from that secondary report.
- Local incidents: Austin Independent School District officials reported at least five incidents in Austin, according to a letter filed with NHTSA (techcrunch.com).
Remediação
No defender action applies; this is a vehicle safety defect matter. The vendor-facing step is the response to NHTSA's recall query, which Waymo has said it will work on once received.
Linha do tempo
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NHTSA opens recall query as Waymo robotaxis kept passing stopped school buses after software fix
ler a análise desta fonte ocultar
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened a recall query into Waymo's robotaxi software, after reports that its vehicles kept driving past school buses with extended stop signs and flashing red lights. According to a November 6 filing, most of the reported incidents happened after Waymo deployed a software update meant to fix the problem. The agency's Office of Defects Investigation is assessing whether the remedy is adequate, and the recall query follows an October 2025 investigation triggered by footage from Atlanta. Waymo says it has made significant improvements and has received no citations since March 2026, while the agency is looking at post-remedy incidents. No injuries are reported in the article, and no cyber component is involved.
Technical Details
- Affected behavior: Waymo vehicles passing stopped school buses that have their stop arms out and lights flashing. In the Atlanta incident that started the first probe, a robotaxi crossed in front of the bus from its right side and then turned left around the front of it (techcrunch.com).
- Remedy timeline: Waymo said a software update was completed for all affected vehicles on November 17, 2025. NHTSA's filing states that most incidents occurred after that update.
- Scope: A search snippet from tipranks.com reports that the recall query covers 2,985 Waymo vehicles. The NHTSA filing itself was not retrieved during research, so this figure is taken from that secondary report.
- Local incidents: Austin Independent School District officials reported at least five incidents in Austin, according to a letter filed with NHTSA (techcrunch.com).
Remediation
No defender action applies; this is a vehicle safety defect matter. The vendor-facing step is the response to NHTSA's recall query, which Waymo has said it will work on once received.