Last month, one of Google’s self-driving Lexus SUVs reportedly crashed into a public bus when changing lanes, on the roads of California.
The search-engine giant, usually prides itself on the fact that none of its autonomous fleet have been responsible for reported crashes, instead human drivers are to blame. However, according to a California DMV filing, on 14 February, Google’s Lexus SUV collided with a public bus near its headquarters in Mountain View.
The driverless car was reportedly travelling at a low speed of 2mph and the bus was travelling at 15mph and no injuries were reported. The report stated:
“After a few cars had passed, the Google AV began to proceed back into the centre of the lane to pass the sand bags. A public transit bus was approaching from behind. The Google AV test driver saw the bus approaching in the left side mirror but believed the bus would stop or slow to allow the Google AV to continue. Approximately three seconds later, as the Google AV was re-entering the centre of the lane it made contact with the side of the bus.”
Google is to meet with the DMV and if the body considers Google’s autonomous vehicle to be at fault, it could be a potential setback for Google’s future plans. As of January, its driverless cars have been involved in 17 crashes, all of which have been caused by human error. Google has previously predicted they’ll be road-ready by 2020.
Only recently, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that the artificial intelligence inside Google’s self-driving cars will now be identified as a driver.
Related: Google’s self-driving cars to be recognised as a ‘driver’
