Cruise AV impedes San Francisco firefighters

Firefighters in San Francisco had to smash the front window of a Cruise autonomous vehicle (AV) to stop it from running over their hoses as they fought a fire, violating the California Vehicle Code. According to a letter (pdf) sent to a state regulator by directors of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and the Mayor’s Office on Disability, a Cruise AV entered an active fire scene, drove towards the fire hoses on the ground, and failed to stop despite 'efforts' made by the firefighters on scene to block it. Only Cruise experts can disengage an AV from autonomous mode and immobilise the vehicle, according to Insider . Vice reports that Cruise AVs regularly clog San Francisco streets, block lanes and intersections, suffer from shoddy software and erratic driving . ➕ June 2022. A self-driving Cruise AV also ran over a fire hose that was in use, according to the regulator's letter. And an anonymous Cruise whistleblower wrote to the California Utilities Commission to warn that the company loses contact with its driverless vehicles 'with regularity.' System 🤖 Cruise Automated Driving System Operator: GM Cruise Developer: GM Cruise; General Motors/Chevrolet Country: USA Sector: Automotive Purpose: Automate steering, acceleration, braking Technology: Self-driving system Issue: Accuracy/reliability; Safety Legal, regulatory 👩🏼‍⚖️ San Francisco County Transportation Authority (2023). Re Protest of Cruise LLC Tier 2 Advice Letter (0002) (pdf)

Date it happened

2021-01-01

Organisation involved

General Motors/Cruise LLC

Product, system or model

Cruise AV

This is a record of what was reported, not a finding that anyone broke the law. If it names your organisation and you believe it is wrong, the corrections process is free and open to everyone.