TMZ reports that a police officer in Arizona pulled over a self-driving SUV that was crossing into the oncoming traffic.
An officer stopped a white Jaguar SUV for a traffic violation and found the vehicle to be unoccupied. according to According to TMZ, the SUV, operated by Waymo, a self-driving car company owned by Google parent Alphabet, veered into oncoming traffic and ran a red light, in what was later explained as a reaction to “inconsistent construction signs.”
Police officer stops self-driving Waymo car after it veers into oncoming traffic | Read more 👇 https://t.co/Ogk1FH7CgC
— TMZ (@TMZ) July 5, 2024
The incident, captured on video, shows an officer approaching the vehicle after a short pursuit in hopes of confronting the driver. The officer then realized the SUV was unoccupied and realized he had stopped an unoccupied vehicle, according to the media. The Waymo vehicle responded to the police vehicle's emergency lights and sirens and stopped, which is standard procedure for self-driving cars in such situations. (Related: German court rules Tesla's Autopilot 'major risk' and orders company to refund customers)
BREAKING: A Phoenix police officer recently pulled over a driverless Waymo vehicle for driving on the wrong side of the road.
As officers approached, the self-driving car rolled down its windows.
Waymo blamed the accident on “inconsistent construction signage.” pic.twitter.com/svgyAKFcQ5
— 🇺🇸 Larry 🇺🇸 (@LarryDJonesJr) July 4, 2024
The officer contacted Waymo, whose support staff quickly arrived on scene to respond. According to TMZ, Waymo later explained that the vehicle was slightly confused by a construction sign and failed to return to the correct lane, which led to the traffic violation. The incident ended without a ticket being issued, as the officer noted that it was not possible for the computer to issue a ticket. No other vehicles were involved and no injuries were reported.
