San Francisco Blackout Halts Waymo's Autonomous Cars

Citywide Power Failure Disrupts Ride-Hailing Services

In the midst of a major blackout that disabled traffic signals throughout San Francisco, numerous Waymo self-driving vehicles found themselves immobilized in the city's intersections. Faced with the situation, the company opted to halt its ride-hailing operations temporarily, while images and footage flooded social media, depicting driverless cars stopped at junctions with their hazard lights activated.

Suzanne Philion, representing Waymo, communicated via email to Engadget, stating, "With the broad power failure in the San Francisco Bay Area, we have put our ride-hailing services on hold. Our teams are working hard in close collaboration with city officials, hoping for a swift service restoration."

The root of the blackout was traced back to a blaze at a Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) substation. This incident, which commenced early on a Saturday morning, impacted around 130,000 residents. By the following morning, PG&E reported that its teams had restored power to roughly 110,000 customers, continuing efforts to reach the still-affected 21,000 homes predominantly in San Francisco’s Presidio, Richmond District, Golden Gate Park, and certain downtown locales.

Analyzing the Stranding of Autonomous Vehicles

While Waymo hasn’t clarified why their autonomous vehicles became stranded during the blackout, it suggests a potential vulnerability in the Waymo Driver system. This self-driving technology claims to recognize traffic signals and temporary signage, hinting at potential difficulties when signals are inoperative. Concurrently, Tesla CEO Elon Musk weighed in on social media, pointing out that Tesla's self-driving taxis remained unaffected during the San Francisco power cut.