Austin first responders raise concerns about self-driving vehicles

Self-driving cars freeze during emergencies

Austin’s first responders are raising concerns about autonomous vehicles. This comes after videos show that the self-driving cars freeze during emergency situations.

AUSTIN, Texas - Austin’s first responders are raising concerns about autonomous vehicles. 

This comes after videos show autonomous vehicles (AV) seemingly frozen during emergency situations.

The backstory:

During the City of Austin special meeting on Wednesday, videos were played that showed Waymos in Austin caught in situations first responders say are becoming a real concern. 

This included at least two videos from the response during the Sixth Street mass shooting showing a Waymo stopped in the middle of the street about a block and a half from Buford’s, blocking an ambulance, and then another Waymo frozen because of all the foot traffic in the area.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Waymo declines to meet with Austin leaders to hear concerns

Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company, confirmed it will not attend a special public meeting with city council members on Wednesday. This comes after one of their vehicles was seen blocking first responders during the Sixth Street mass shooting in March.

Officials said when there is an incident where they expect to have a lot of first responders going to it, they send an active 911 email to the AV companies in Austin for them to stay away, or geofence, it’s a 1,000-foot radius for at least an hour.

Waymo said since this incident, they have implemented updated geofence requirements for significant events that match or surpass the city’s request.

What they're saying:

First responders said other problems they’ve encountered are AVs not avoiding flooded areas, not understanding hand signals, and not staying away from active scenes.

Austin Fire Battalion Chief Matt Holmes said they’ve offered to do training scenarios with Waymo.

"We'll set aside, we'll set up hose lines, we'll set up intersections, we will do hand signals, we'll do these scenarios that way we can help you kind of work through that, and they have yet to take us up on that," Battalion Chief Holmes said.

Dig deeper:

The city has very limited authority to regulate AV companies because they’re governed by the state, but the city presented recommendations Wednesday. 

They are requesting all AV companies geofence for serious emergencies, share information about their disaster planning, and participate in citywide emergency planning, and hold regular meetings on how they are working to improve their systems.

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Waymo declines to meet with Austin leaders to discuss interactions with first responders

Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company, confirmed it will not attend a special public meeting with city council members on Wednesday. This comes after one of their vehicles was seen blocking first responders during the Sixth Street mass shooting in March.

Waymo said they update and invest in their emergency preparedness and response processes on an ongoing basis, incorporating lessons and feedback from local partners. They also said they will continue working with Austin’s leadership. 

They said they have already met with council members, more than 15 city officials, and the highest levels of state government.

On the legislative side, the city is asking the state to step in, giving the Texas DMV the power to immediately restrict AV operations after serious crashes and allow officers to issue digital tickets to AV’s more quickly.