Waymo autonomous vehicle injures San Francisco cyclist
SAN FRANCISCO - A bicyclist was struck and injured by a Waymo autonomous vehicle in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood on Tuesday.
San Francisco police said officers responded to 17th and Mississippi streets just after 3 p.m. regarding a vehicle and bicyclist collision.
SFPD said they located an autonomous vehicle and the cyclist. The cyclist's injuries are said to be non-life threatening.
Police said no occupants of the Waymo car reported any injuries.
In a statement, Waymo, based in Mountain View, said their vehicle was at a complete stop at a four-way intersection.
"An oncoming large truck progressed through the intersection in our direction and then at our turn to proceed, we moved into the intersection. The cyclist was occluded by the truck and quickly followed behind it, crossing into the Waymo vehicle's path."
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Waymo representatives said their vehicle braked but was unable to avoid the collision. The AV company characterized the cyclist's injuries as "minor scratches" and said they were able to leave on their own.
In addition, Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., the parent company of Google, said they were the ones who contacted police. The company did not acknowledge any passengers present in their vehicle during the crash.
Last fall, Cruise, another autonomous vehicle company operating in San Francisco, had its permit suspended by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
At the time, the DMV deemed Cruise's robotaxis were not safe for the public's operation.
Cruise and Waymo both received regulatory approval from the California Public Utilities Commission in Aug. 2022 to commercially operate their vehicles at all hours.
However, the DMV ordered Cruise to cut its fleet in half a week after the CPUC's approval. There were several crashes involving Cruise that were under investigation at the time. One of them involved the hit-and-run of a woman at 5th and Market streets.
The woman was walking across the street and was struck by a car driven by a person who fled. She was then struck by a Cruise vehicle and dragged. Cruise's fleet was also criticized by top city officials for impeding emergency responders.
Waymo said they are making contact with "relevant authorities" regarding Tuesday night's crash. On Wednesday, KTVU asked if Waymo would be releasing video of the crash. They did not answer that question and instead re-sent their previous statement.
SFPD said the cause of the collision is under investigation.
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