Overview
- The safety board said it will send investigators to Austin to examine cases where Waymo vehicles failed to stop for buses loading or unloading students with lights and stop-arms activated.
- Austin ISD has documented at least 24 violations this school year with bus-camera footage and asked Waymo to pause operations during pickup and drop-off times, which the district says the company declined.
- NHTSA’s separate investigation opened in October remains active, and Waymo issued a December software recall affecting more than 3,000 vehicles to address bus-stop behavior.
- District records and media reports indicate multiple violations occurred after software updates, including several in November, raising questions about the effectiveness of the fixes.
- Waymo says there have been no collisions in these events and maintains its system is improving and safer than human drivers, while the NTSB’s final report is expected in 12 to 24 months and will include nonbinding recommendations.