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SAN FRANCISCO — The California Department of Motor Vehicles announced Tuesday that the agency has suspended the permits of autonomous vehicle firm Cruise LLC.
In a statement, the DMV said it notified the San Francisco-based company, a subsidiary of General Motors, that its autonomous vehicle deployment and driverless testing permits have been suspended, effective immediately. The decision will not affect the company's permission to test with a safety driver.
According to the DMV, suspensions are based on several factors:
13 CCR §228.20 (b) (6) – Under vehicle operation, the department determines that the manufacturer's vehicles are unsafe for public operation.
13 CCR §228.20 (b) (3) – A manufacturer has misrepresented any information related to the safety of its autonomous vehicle technology.
13 CCR §227.42 (b)(5) – Any act or omission by the manufacturer or one of its agents, employees, contractors, or designees that, in the Department's opinion, would make the manufacturer's testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads an unreasonable risk. to society.
13 CCR §227.42 (c) – The department must immediately suspend or revoke a manufacturer's testing permit or a manufacturer's testing permit – driverless vehicles if the manufacturer engages in a practice such that immediate suspension is necessary for the safety of those persons. public road
Cruise has faced increasing scrutiny since the State Public Utilities Commission It allowed the company and rival Waymo to expand their robotaxis testing in San Francisco.
city ​​officials criticized this move and asked the CPUC to withhold authorization in favor of an incremental approach amid reports of vehicles taking wrong turns, stopping in the middle of the road and interfering with first responders.
After the decision, the DMV asked Cruise The city's robotaxi fleet has been halved after two crashesOne of which was an ambulance.
Cruise faced additional scrutiny after the crash earlier this month when a human driver hit a woman near Market and Fifth streets, sending her into the path of a robotax.
The woman was seriously injured. Law enforcement officers are still looking for the hit-and-run driver.
last week, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that it was investigating Cruise after receiving reports of incidents where the company's autonomous vehicles did not use proper caution on roads around pedestrians.
Shortly after the DMV's announcement, Cruise said it would stop operating its autonomous vehicles in San Francisco.
“Ultimately, we develop and deploy autonomous vehicles to save lives,” the company said in a statement.
The company also addressed the crash at Market and Fifth streets.
“During the incident, which is being investigated by the DMV, a hit-and-run driver tragically crashed and struck a pedestrian in the path of the AV. The AV braked aggressively prior to the collision and, as the collision was detected, attempted to swerve to further avoid the collision. Security issues. When the AV tried to jump, it continued to its last stop, moving forward on foot. Our thoughts are still with the victim as we hope for a speedy and complete recovery,” the company said.
Cruise said the company shared the information with the DMV, CPUC and NHTSA, including the video. The company also helped police identify the hit-and-run vehicle.
“Our teams are currently conducting analysis to identify potential improvements in AV response to this type of extremely rare event,” the company continued.
The DMV said it provided Cruise with the necessary steps to reinstate the suspended permits. Reinstatement will occur only if the company “fulfils the requirements to the department's satisfaction,” the agency said.
