California Suspends Tests Of GMs Cruise Self-driving Car
San Francisco, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 25th Oct, 2023) California authorities on Tuesday suspended testing of Cruise driverless cars put to work in the US state as robotaxis by General Motors, citing safety concerns following a series of accidents and other problems.
“When there is an unreasonable risk to public safety, the DMV can immediately suspend or revoke permits,” the California Department of Motor Vehicles said in response to an AFP inquiry.
The move came just weeks after a self-driving car operated by Cruise ran over a woman after she was first knocked in front of it by a hit-and-run driver in San Francisco.
Cruise paused operations of driverless autonomous vehicles Tuesday after getting word of the permit suspensions, spokesperson Hannah Lindow told AFP.
“We are devastated by what happened to the victim, and are committed, as always, to continuously improving our safety — including in response to extremely rare scenarios such as this,” Cruise said in an analysis of the accident posted Tuesday.
Video presented to AFP by Cruise showed the self-driving car and another vehicle slightly ahead to its left moving through an intersection with a green light when the second car hit the woman.
“The initial impact was severe and launched the pedestrian directly in front of the AV,” Lindow told AFP, the description conforming to video captured by car cameras.
“The AV then braked aggressively to minimize the impact.”
The Cruise autonomous vehicle stopped atop the woman, while the other car left the scene, video showed.
The severely injured woman was pinned beneath the AV when first responders arrived, according to the San Francisco Fire Department.
Firefighters contacted the Cruise control center to make sure the vehicle was securely stopped, then used heavy rescue tools to lift it and pull the woman out, department officials said in a release.
