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Freeman [soylentnews.org] writes:

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2024/08/feds-probe-of-hard-braking-in-cruise-robotaxi-crashes-ends-after-recall/ [arstechnica.com]

Following a successful recall, federal safety investigators have concluded an investigation that was sparked [arstechnica.com] after a number of Cruise robotaxis crashed after braking inappropriately when being followed by other cars. It's a spot of good news for the autonomous driving startup, which has been under heavy scrutiny by federal and state [arstechnica.com] regulators lately.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Office of Defects Investigation opened [nhtsa.gov] a preliminary evaluation in December 2022 after reports emerged that Cruise's robotaxis could engage in "inappropriately hard braking" or become immobilized while driving, thus becoming obstacles and potentially causing a crash.

At the time, NHTSA had three reports of Cruise robotaxis braking hard in response to another vehicle or cyclist approaching quickly from behind, resulting in the robotaxi being rear-ended.
[...]
In total, NHTSA identified 10 crashes that were caused by inappropriately hard braking by a Cruise robotaxi, four of which also involved a vulnerable road user and ended in injury.
[...]
Earlier this month, Cruise initiated a safety recall [nhtsa.gov], pushing out new software due to meetings between the AV developer and NHTSA to go over the data from Cruise and its peers. The recall notes that software updates throughout 2023 and until May 2024 reduced the propensity for this problem to occur, thanks to improvements in how the robotaxis perceive, predict, and plan.
[...]
"We are committed to building trust and increasing transparency with respect to autonomous vehicle technology and look forward to our continued work with NHTSA toward that end," a Cruise spokesperson told Ars.

That work will continue in the context of [nhtsa.gov] a second safety investigation opened last October after a pedestrian was hit by another car and then dragged down the road underneath the Cruise robotaxi. That incident also resulted in California suspending Cruise's license [arstechnica.com] and the departure of then-CEO Kyle Vogt [arstechnica.com].

Previously on SoylentNews:
California Suspends Cruise Robotaxis After Car Dragged Pedestrian 20 Feet [soylentnews.org] - 20231027

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