Techcrunch
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has launched an investigation into Waymo's autonomous vehicles after multiple instances of them failing to stop for school buses loading or unloading students in at least two states. This marks the first NTSB probe into Waymo, following a similar investigation by the NHTSA.
AI 生成摘要
美國國家運輸安全委員會（NTSB）已對Waymo的自動駕駛車輛展開調查，因其在至少兩個州多次發生未對載卸學生的校車停車的違規行為。這是NTSB首次對Waymo進行調查，此前美國國家公路交通安全管理局（NHTSA）也已展開類似調查。
Latest
AI
Amazon
Apps
Biotech & Health
Climate
Cloud Computing
Commerce
Crypto
Enterprise
EVs
Fintech
Fundraising
Gadgets
Gaming
Government & Policy
Hardware
Layoffs
Media & Entertainment
Meta
Microsoft
Privacy
Robotics
Security
Social
Space
Startups
TikTok
Transportation
Venture
Staff
Events
Startup Battlefield
StrictlyVC
Newsletters
Podcasts
Videos
Partner Content
TechCrunch Brand Studio
Crunchboard
Contact Us
The National Transportation Safety Board has opened an investigation into Waymo after its robotaxis have been spotted illegally passing stopped school buses numerous times in at least two states.
The NTSB is specifically focusing on the more-than-20 incidences that have occurred in Austin, Texas, it said in a post on X on Friday.
“Investigators will travel to Austin to gather information on a series of incidents in which the automated vehicles failed to stop for loading or unloading students,” the NTSB said in a statement to TechCrunch. A preliminary report is expected within 30 days, and the safety board will publish a more detailed final report in 12 to 24 months.
It’s the first time Waymo has been investigated by the NTSB, but it’s the second investigation launched into Waymo over its school bus problem. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation opened a similar probe in October.
Waymo also issued a software recall in December to address the problem. But previous software updates have not been enough to stamp it out, and in Austin, Texas — where the bulk of incidents have been captured on camera — the school district has asked the company to suspend operations during pickup and drop-off times.
The new investigation comes as Waymo is in the middle of a rapid expansion around the United States. Just this week, the company started offering a robotaxi service in Miami, adding to its operations in Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
“We safely navigate thousands of school bus encounters weekly across the United States, and the Waymo Driver is continuously improving. There have been no collisions in the events in question, and we are confident that our safety performance around school buses is superior to human drivers,” Mauricio Peña, Waymo’s chief safety officer, said in a statement to TechCrunch. “We see this as an opportunity to provide the NTSB with transparent insights into our safety-first approach.”
The NTSB is different from the NHTSA in that it is not a federal regulatory agency. It cannot issue fines or penalties. Rather, the safety board usually performs deep investigations to identify root causes of problems in the transportation world. When an investigation is complete, the board often holds hearings and issues non-binding recommendations.
The first notable incident where a Waymo vehicle passed a stopped school bus happened last September in Atlanta, Georgia. The Waymo pulled out of a driveway and crossed perpendicularly in front of the school bus from the bus’ right side. The robotaxi then turned left and proceeded down the street while kids were getting off the bus.
Waymo said at the time that the vehicle was unable to see the stop sign or flashing lights, and has since said that it addressed this particular scenario with a software update.
But as Waymo patched the specific scenario it encountered in Atlanta, some of the company’s vehicles were caught passing stopped school buses in Austin, Texas. Local news outlet KXAN published videos it received from cameras mounted on school buses that showed Waymo vehicles making illegal maneuvers on multiple occasions.
“We continue to engage productively with the Austin Independent School District and applaud their reported success in reducing human-driven violations around school buses from 10,000+ a year,” Peña said.
Topics
Sr. Reporter, Transportation
Sean O’Kane is a reporter who has spent a decade covering the rapidly-evolving business and technology of the transportation industry, including Tesla and the many startups chasing Elon Musk. Most recently, he was a reporter at Bloomberg News where he helped break stories about some of the most notorious EV SPAC flops. He previously worked at The Verge, where he also covered consumer technology, hosted many short- and long-form videos, performed product and editorial photography, and once nearly passed out in a Red Bull Air Race plane.
You can contact or verify outreach from Sean by emailing [email protected] or via encrypted message at okane.01 on Signal.
Tickets are live at the lowest rates of the year. Save up to $680 on your pass — and if you’re among the first 500 registrants, score a +1 pass at 50% off.Meet investors. Discover your next portfolio company. Hear from 250+ tech leaders, dive into 200+ sessions, and explore 300+ startups building what’s next. Don’t miss these one-time savings.
Microsoft gave FBI a set of BitLocker encryption keys to unlock suspects’ laptops: Reports
Capital One acquires Brex for a steep discount to its peak valuation, but early believers are laughing all the way to the bank
Anthropic’s CEO stuns Davos with Nvidia criticism
Humans&, a ‘human-centric’ AI startup founded by Anthropic, xAI, Google alums, raised $480M seed round
SpaceX didn’t properly inspect crane before collapse at Starbase, OSHA says
Well, there goes the metaverse!
Why Silicon Valley is really talking about fleeing California (it’s not the 5%)
© 2025 TechCrunch Media LLC.