Waymo pauses Atlanta services as Robotaxis end up driving into floodwaters

As robotaxis struggle to navigate rain and flood conditions, Waymo has paused its services in two cities. The issue has already led the company to issue a recall last week. One of Waymo’s robotaxis drove through a flooded street in Atlanta, Georgia, on Wednesday, getting reportedly stuck for more than an hour. The vehicle was soon recovered and removed from the scene.

Reports confirm that Waymo has admitted it had not finished developing a final strategy for avoiding flooded areas when it issued a software recall last week. The company had shipped an update to its fleet that placed strict restrictions on operating in areas and at times where there is an elevated risk of encountering floods and high-speed roadways, according to documents released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

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However, these precautions did not stop robotaxis from entering flooded zones, and a few vehicles ended up entering a flooded intersection in Atlanta. Reports add that this is not the first time Waymo has struggled to quickly address problematic behaviour in its robotaxis. Last year, users observed Waymo robotaxis illegally passing stopped school buses. The company attempted to fix the issue, but similar violations reportedly continued around school buses.

In another incident, a Waymo vehicle picked up AJC journalist Rachael Knudsen on Wednesday evening and, during the trip, got stuck in floodwaters multiple times. Knudsen expressed her frustration in an Instagram post, saying, “It happened again, the Waymo just drove into a flooded street and gave up.”

The AJC reporter soon took an Uber, as assistance from Waymo would have taken around an hour to arrive.

Robotaxis Under Investigation

Both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are investigating the issue. Waymo has already submitted a batch of documents to the NHTSA, though they were heavily redacted before being made public.

Another investigation by the NTSB involves a January 23 incident in which a Waymo robotaxi crashed into a child in Santa Monica, California. Waymo stated that its robotaxi had slowed to around six miles per hour before striking the child, who suffered minor injuries.