Operation of US Robotaxi Suspended After Attempt to Park While Dragging Pedestrian Crushed by Vehicle

Robotaxi to operate 24/7 in San Francisco from August
General Motors subsidiary 'Cruise' fatal accident
"Not safe for public use, operation suspended"

The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has suspended the operating permit of Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors (GM), following an incident in San Francisco where a pedestrian struck by a vehicle was dragged by an autonomous taxi (robotaxi) without a driver.

On the 24th (local time), U.S. tech media TechCrunch reported that the California DMV announced it would "suspend all operating permits, including vehicle testing on public roads, for Cruise's robotaxis as they are not safe for public use."

Robotaxi Cruise. [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

The transportation authorities also pointed out that Cruise failed to provide video footage of the earlier pedestrian accident in a timely manner and made false statements regarding the details.

The incident occurred on the 2nd when a pedestrian crossing a crosswalk in San Francisco was hit by another vehicle involved in a hit-and-run and then entered the path of a Cruise robotaxi. The pedestrian was trapped under the robotaxi and seriously injured but is reported to be in stable condition.

Cruise stated that in the incident, the robotaxi "detected the collision and attempted to brake, dragging the pedestrian approximately 20 feet (about 600 meters) forward" during the process.

However, according to the authorities' investigation, the robotaxi ran over the pedestrian 'after colliding' during the emergency braking. It was found that while attempting to park on the shoulder after the vehicle had come to a complete stop, the pedestrian was dragged while still under the vehicle.

This is not the first accident involving a Cruise robotaxi. On August 17, a robotaxi carrying passengers collided with a fire truck responding to an emergency call while entering an intersection in downtown San Francisco. One passenger was injured and transported to the hospital. Cruise stopped after the fire truck struck the right side of the vehicle.

Additionally, there was an incident where a Cruise robotaxi stopped on a street near the beach, causing a traffic jam lasting more than 15 minutes. Kyle Vogt, CEO of Cruise, told The Washington Post (WP), "We are talking about a 15-minute traffic delay, but on the other hand, (robotaxis) provide many public benefits to the community."

Robotaxis have been allowed to operate commercially 24 hours a day in San Francisco since August. However, following a series of accidents, calls for enhanced safety measures for robotaxis are growing.

Civil groups such as 'Rebellion for Safe Roads' have staged protests by placing traffic cones on the hoods of robotaxis to disable their operation. They told the British daily The Guardian, "We wanted to show that robotaxis are an incomplete service that causes traffic congestion even with small obstacles."

Meanwhile, with Cruise's suspension, only Waymo, Google's autonomous driving subsidiary, is allowed to operate in San Francisco. The duration of Cruise's suspension has not been disclosed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.