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A Waymo robotaxi in California hit a child, a 10-year-old girl, this week. That headline is, naturally, going to get people’s blood boiling and fears soaring. But it’s quite important to look at the details before jumping to conclusions.
So, the young girl apparently ran into the road after being concealed by a large SUV. The Waymo robotaxi did then brake hard to try to avoid the child. The Waymo Driver was able to reduce its speed from 17 mph to 6 mph before bumping into the girl. If a human was driving the vehicle, they would apparently be able to get the speed down to 14 mph — and that’s assuming they weren’t driving faster than 17 mph in the first place. Frankly, if we’re being honest, the girl could have been killed. Instead, she was able to walk away from the incident nearly unscathed.
Here’s how Waymo describes the pedestrian collision:
“The event occurred when the pedestrian suddenly entered the roadway from behind a tall SUV, moving directly into our vehicle’s path. Our technology immediately detected the individual as soon as they began to emerge from behind the stopped vehicle. The Waymo Driver braked hard, reducing speed from approximately 17 mph to under 6 mph before contact was made.
“To put this in perspective, our peer-reviewed model shows that a fully attentive human driver in this same situation would have made contact with the pedestrian at approximately 14 mph. This significant reduction in impact speed and severity is a demonstration of the material safety benefit of the Waymo Driver.
“Following contact, the pedestrian stood up immediately, walked to the sidewalk, and we called 911. The vehicle remained stopped, moved to the side of the road, and stayed there until law enforcement cleared the vehicle to leave the scene.”
As we can see, Waymo has a clear process in place to handle these kinds of situations and to respond appropriately. Beyond the immediate on-road response, it is also working with authorities to examine the incident further. “At Waymo, we are committed to improving road safety, both for our riders and all those with whom we share the road. Part of that commitment is being transparent when incidents occur, which is why we are sharing details regarding an event in Santa Monica, California, on Friday, January 23, where one of our vehicles made contact with a young pedestrian,” the company notes. “Following the event, we voluntarily contacted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that same day. NHTSA has indicated to us that they intend to open an investigation into this incident, and we will cooperate fully with them throughout the process.”
It would be great if cars never hit each other or pedestrians, but we have a long ways to go in many regards to try to achieve that. However, it seems clear that Waymo is doing great work avoiding them in many cases and minimizing them in others. I shudder to think what would have happened to this young girl if a human had been driving through there at this moment instead of a Waymo robotaxi.
“This event demonstrates the critical value of our safety systems. We remain committed to improving road safety where we operate as we continue on our mission to be the world’s most trusted driver,” Waymo concludes.
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