Thousands of Waymo robotaxis recalled over risk of entering flooded roads

Waymo is recalling thousands of its self-driving cars successful the US implicit a bundle contented that could let vehicles to thrust into flooded roads.

It follows an incidental connected 20 April successful San Antonio, Texas, wherever an bare Waymo conveyance entered a flooded roadworthy and was swept into a creek.

The BBC has contacted Waymo, which is owned by Google's genitor institution Alphabet, for comment.

Waymo's San Antonio work besides remains temporarily suspended pursuing the incident, though the institution said it volition resume nationalist rides aft the indispensable bundle hole had been rolled out.

According to the NHTSA letter, impermanent updates limiting wherever affected vehicles tin thrust during utmost upwind person already been applied.

Jack Stilgoe, prof of subject and exertion argumentation astatine University College London, told the BBC that each self-driving car systems had limits connected erstwhile and wherever they could run safely.

"We often spot these limits lone erstwhile thing goes wrong," helium said.

As much autonomous vehicles are deployed, Prof Stilgoe said, much specified problems are apt to emerge.

"That isn't to accidental the exertion won't beryllium hugely beneficial," helium added.

"But policymakers would similar to cognize astir these things successful beforehand alternatively than discovering them successful hindsight."

Over the past twelvemonth respective incidents with antithetic driverless car firms person raised concerns implicit robotaxi safety.