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Cop Pulls Over Robotaxi For Illegal Turn But There’s No One Behind The Wheel
- A Waymo robotaxi initially came to an unexpected stop in the middle of the road.
- Shortly after the driver of a G-Class approached it, the car made an illegal left turn.
- When it stopped again, an officer checked it out, but couldn’t hand out a ticket.
A Waymo self-driving robotaxi in Los Angeles recently found itself in a bit of a pickle after stopping abruptly in traffic, making an illegal left turn, and then being pulled over by a police officer in the heart of Los Angeles. While a human driver might have ended up with a ticket, fully autonomous vehicles currently dodge that fate in California since there’s no person behind the wheel to hold accountable.
Read: Waymo’s NYC Debut Comes With Training Wheels
A clip of the incident was recently shared on social media. It shows a white Jaguar I-Pace stopped in the middle of a road in Beverly Hills, much to the dismay of a Mercedes-Benz G-Class driver behind it.
According to the individual filming, the man slapped the rear of the car, either purely out of frustration, or in the hope it would get the car to start moving. Not the most reliable method, but hey, it occasionally works on stubborn toasters at home.
Maybe it did in this case too, because moments later, the robotaxi began moving again. But its next moves didn’t exactly smooth things over. A police officer in a Ford Explorer pulled in behind it, just as the Waymo SUV slipped in front of an electric Mercedes and made an awkward, and illegal, left turn.
After appearing to get confused by the flashing red and blue lights behind it, the robotaxi eventually pulled over to the side of the road.
@kiefer_d_live Replying to @himothee55 I used the song to cover up my hysterical laughter 🫣 #waymo ♬ original sound – Kiefer_D
It’s unclear what happened after the officer stepped out and approached the Jag, but they likely spoke with a human operator over the phone as there was no one onboard at the time.
No Ticket, But Not Off the Hook for Long
In the end, Waymo’s car probably without a ticket. According to The Washington Post, autonomous vehicles are currently exempt from receiving moving violations in California, as these must be issued to a human driver.
However, this policy is set to change. Starting in July 2026, police will be able to issue “notices of autonomous vehicle noncompliance” when a self-driving vehicle breaks the rules of the road. Not a moment too soon, if we may add.
