Observing Cruise’s Response to the CPUsC: “It Isn’t”: Incorrectness of an Experiment to Make AVs Operate in the Bay Area
For the second quarter in a row, Cruise is providing trip data to the CPUsC, which is required by its commercial permit. And the company says its next report will show a significant increase in passengers and miles traveled as it continues to ramp up its robotaxi operation in the Bay Area. Cruise is waiting for CPUC to approve its request to expand operation to the entire city of San Francisco.
We are starting to see the vehicles respond to complex traffic situations, because both companies have their fully automated vehicles on San Francisco streets.
The company had originally planned to unveil a commercial service there in 2019 but failed to do so after determining the technology wasn’t quite ready. The service later launched in 2022.
The National Highway Traffic Administration said last week that it had begun an investigation regarding incidents in which Cruise vehicles have resulted in rear end accidents and blocked traffic. The company said it welcomed the scrutiny, noting that its vehicles have caused “zero life-threatening injuries or fatalities.”
The city is asking the commission to not allow the companies to add more AVs on the roads. They point to certain instances when Cruise’s robotaxis obstruct emergency vehicles as evidence that the experiment went too far.
“A series of limited deployments with incremental expansions — rather than unlimited authorizations — offer the best path toward public confidence in driving automation and industry success in San Francisco and beyond,” the letter reads.
The California Public Utilities Commission Receives More Information about the Safety and Performance of Waymo’s Fully Autonomous Vehicles
Months later, a Cruise AV “ran over a fire hose that was in use at an active fire scene,” and another Cruise vehicle almost did the same at an active firefighting scene earlier this month. Firefighters say they could only stop the vehicle from running over the hose after “they shattered a front window” of the car. When Cruise called for emergency services to be dispatched to unresponsive passengers, they found the rider had just fallen asleep.
“Cruise’s safety record is publicly reported and includes having driven millions of miles in an extremely complex urban environment with zero life-threatening injuries or fatalities,” Cruise spokesperson Aaron Mclear tells The Verge.
“These letters are a standard part of the regulatory process, and we have long appreciated a healthy dialogue with city officials and government agencies in California,” Waymo spokesperson Katherine Barna says in a statement to The Verge. “Waymo will have the opportunity to reply in our submission to the CPUC next week.”
This week, the California Public Utilities Commission received voyage data from both Cruise and Waymo and they show some progress in the number of miles and passengers served.
(Waymo does conduct trips in its fully autonomous vehicles, but free of charge and only with employees or friends of employees as passengers. The permit to charge for driverless trips is still being considered by the commission.
During those three months, the company only reported one collision. The rear passenger side bumper of the Cruise AV was damaged when the Honda Accord made contact with it. There were no injuries reported when the vehicle was in motion.
In three months, as part of its pilot, the company did 183 trips and ferried 441 passengers. Its drivered vehicles did 6,313 trips, served 7,963 passengers, and traveled more than 410,700 miles, which includes its driverless pilot trips, as well as educational demo rides and rides given to Waymo employees and one or more guest. Employee-only trips are not reported as they don’t fall under CPUC jurisdiction.
Waymo and Cruise have defended their safety record and characterize the letters as part of the normal push-and-pull between regulators and the companies they regulate. Their data reports show the vehicles rolling on, oblivious to the increasing drama.