Automotive News – Cruise robotaxi was second vehicle to strike San Francisco pedestrian, video shows
See full original article by Pete Bigelow at Automotive News.
Editors note: this is a key article because the reporter viewed video from the Cruise vehicle and explains how the pedestrian was not suddenly “hurled” or “flung” into the path of the Cruise. Instead, the pedestrian was not severely impacted by the human-driven car and remained on the hood of that car for 2-3 seconds.
Cruise vehicle ‘braked aggressively to minimize impact,’ spokesperson says.
Video footage captured by cameras aboard a Cruise robotaxi shed light on how a harrowing collision between the vehicle and a pedestrian unfolded.
The collision occurred at about 9:30 p.m. local time Monday night at the intersection of Fifth and Market Streets in San Francisco. The pedestrian was struck by another vehicle and subsequently run over by the Cruise robotaxi.
Rescuers used heavy tools to lift the car and extricate the victim from underneath the robotaxi, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesperson Justin Schorr. The woman endured “multiple traumatic injuries,” he said.
Video reviewed by Automotive News late Tuesday showed how the collision occurred.
The Cruise robotaxi stopped at a red light alongside another vehicle to its immediate left. When the light turned green, both vehicles proceeded through the intersection.
While staying in the left lane, the adjacent vehicle accelerated faster than the robotaxi. As a result, it was about a car length ahead when it struck the pedestrian. The woman was stuck atop the car’s hood for about two to three seconds as the driver continued down the street.
The victim, whose name has not been released, then fell from the first car’s hood onto the road and into the path of the oncoming robotaxi. She was on the ground for little more than a second before being struck.
The Cruise vehicle “braked aggressively to minimize the impact,” said company spokesperson Hannah Lindow. The car was traveling below the street’s 25-mph limit, Lindow told Automotive News. There were no human occupants in the Cruise vehicle.
Cruise did not publicly release the video, citing privacy and legal reasons.
Sensors aboard the vehicle detected the pedestrian before she was struck by the first car and again after she toppled in front of the Cruise vehicle, Lindow said. But she did not immediately know how the company’s self-driving system classified the pedestrian while she was stuck atop of the first car’s hood.
Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors, said it is cooperating with investigators from the San Francisco Police Department, which is seeking information on the driver of the first vehicle.
“We believe that another vehicle that was not an autonomous vehicle may have been initially involved in the collision, but the vehicle or driver were not present at the scene during our investigation,” said police department spokesperson Eve Laokwansathitaya.
NHTSA said it “is aware of the incident and is in contact with the operator and local authorities to gather additional information,” Reuters reported.
The collision is bound to raise questions about the capabilities of both human and autonomous drivers. Whether it is chalked up as a freak encounter or considered the type of edge case self-driving cars could or should anticipate remains ahead.
The crash comes amid heightened concerns about robotaxis operating in San Francisco. First responders have expressed concerns about self-driving cars interfering with their work during and en route to emergencies. The city’s transportation department fought an expansion of Cruise’s deployment, and protestors, in some cases, have resorted to mischief to thwart the vehicles.
