Company Under Federal Safety Investigation to Test Robotaxis in Texas Warns Attorney Amy Witherite
2024年6月18日 - 5:37AM
ビジネスワイヤ(英語)
As Cruise and Zoox expand their testing of automated vehicles
into Texas' largest metro areas, including Austin, Dallas, and
Houston, Witherite Law Group is stepping up to offer specialized
legal services to address the potential risks and pain points
associated with this technology.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is
investigating General Motors’ Cruise autonomous vehicle unit after
getting reports that the vehicles may not have used proper caution
around pedestrians. Cruise recalled its cars to update software
after one of them dragged a pedestrian to the side of a San
Francisco street in early October.
Last year one of its cars operating in San Francisco struck a
pedestrian who was hurled into the driverless taxi’s path by
another vehicle and dragged them approximately 20 feet after
getting pinned under its tire. The California Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) suspended the company’s permits less than a month
later.
In Dallas and Houston, Cruise vehicles will start with drivers
at the wheel, transitioning to autonomous driving with safety
drivers. Eventually, the company aims to launch fully driverless
vehicles accessible through an app, similar to other ridesharing
services.
Attorney Amy Witherite, founder of Witherite Law Group,
highlights the firm's commitment to protecting public safety in the
face of these developments. “The complete lack of government
standards allows companies like Cruise to determine when and if
their technology is safe,” said Witherite. “We have already seen
the tragic results when the unproven experimental technology fails
to meet the challenges of modern traffic.”
According to the company’s blog, Cruise vehicles have more than
5 million driverless miles of testing on public roads, far less
than experts say is necessary. Witherite points out that a RAND
Corporation study warns that “it may not be possible to establish
the safety of autonomous vehicles prior to making them available
for public use. The results show that autonomous vehicles would
have to be driven hundreds of millions of miles and sometimes
hundreds of billions of miles to demonstrate their reliability in
terms of fatalities and injuries.”
Following numerous accidents, Tesla offers the same warning
concerning the reliability of autonomous vehicles. “Full autonomy
will be dependent on achieving reliability far in excess of human
drivers as demonstrated by billions of miles of experience, as well
as regulatory approval.”
For example, the NHTSA launched an investigation after two
Toyota Highlanders equipped with Zoox’s automated self-driving
braked unexpectedly. In both cases, motorcyclists collided with the
Zoox vehicles, which led to minor injuries. The agency’s probe
covers about 500 vehicles and focuses on the performance of Zoox’s
automated driving system, specifically how it behaves near
crosswalks and “in other similar rear-end collision” scenarios.
Zoox will soon begin testing their automated vehicles in
Austin.
The NHTSA has opened an investigation of automated driving
systems involving Waymo’s self-driving vehicles after getting 22
reports of Waymo vehicles either crashing or doing something that
may have violated traffic laws.
“There are almost no regulations for these driverless vehicles,”
said Witherite. “In 2017 the Texas Legislature passed a bill
legalizing driverless vehicles and preventing cities like Dallas
from enacting their own regulations.”
According to The Verge, “the automaker has lost $8.2 billion on
Cruise since 2017, with $3.48 billion lost in 2023 alone.”
“These companies are under tremendous financial pressure to
monetize this technology,” warns Witherite. “Without extensive
testing and regulations, that may come at the expense of public
safety.”
The Witherite Law Group specializes in vehicle accident cases
and offers crucial support for individuals involved in accidents
with driverless vehicles. For more information visit their website.
www.witheritelaw.com/.
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