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Waymo Engineering Van Crashes Into Parked Cars on Narrow Echo Park Street

The company says an autonomous specialist was manually driving with no riders aboard.

Overview

  • Surveillance and security videos show the van veering off the roadway onto a hillside, knocking down a street sign, then striking several parked cars.
  • Cellphone footage from the scene shows deployed airbags, flat tires and significant damage to the Waymo vehicle and nearby cars.
  • Waymo told local media the driver was an autonomous specialist operating the vehicle manually, and no one else was in the vehicle.
  • Witnesses said the vehicle appeared to be moving far faster than typical on the steep one-way block, with one estimating a speed of up to 40 mph.
  • Neighbors described a near-miss involving family members and voiced ongoing concerns about autonomous-vehicle operations on the short, narrow street near Dodger Stadium.