Federal regulators probe Waymo robotaxis still passing school buses

Summarised from 4 outlets · Updated 10 Nov, 04:38 · Archive

US safety regulators are investigating whether Waymo's self-driving taxis continue illegally passing stopped school buses despite a software update last year.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a recall query on 6 November to investigate whether Waymo's software update successfully fixed the problem of its robotaxis illegally passing stopped school buses. The agency said a majority of reported incidents occurred after Waymo completed a software fix in November 2025 and issued a voluntary recall the following month.

Waymo's initial problem emerged after footage showed one of its autonomous vehicles maneuvering around a stopped school bus in Atlanta that had its stop sign extended, lights flashing, and was unloading children. The vehicle crossed in front of the bus and turned left around its front. The Austin Independent School District reported at least five such incidents, with one source citing 24 alleged violations as of January.

It is illegal in all 50 US states to pass a stopped school bus. The NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation will assess the adequacy of Waymo's remedy and identify the causes of post-remedy incidents.

Waymo said it has 'made significant improvements to vehicle behavior around school buses' and received no citations for passing school buses since March 2026. A company spokesperson told Engadget that the firm takes its responsibility 'seriously' and will 'work to respond to NHTSA's query'.

The National Transportation Safety Board, an independent federal agency, also launched its own investigation into Waymo's robotaxi behaviour around stopped school buses. Wired reported that Austin school district officials even organised a data collection event in an empty car park after the recall, with school buses and stop-arm signals, to help Waymo train its vehicles—yet incidents continued.

How it is being reported

• Waymo Said It Fixed Its School Bus Problem. The US Government Says It Didn’t WorkLast year, Waymo recalled its software after several of its autonomous cars drove around stopped buses. But the problems remained. Now the feds want to know more.Wired · 9 Nov, 22:40
• Waymo taxis won’t stop passing stopped school buses, feds sayWaymo announced a voluntary recall last year to address the issue — which is now being investigated by federal regulators over continued safety concernsIndependent World · 9 Nov, 19:18
• NHTSA investigates if Waymo robotaxis are still running school bus stop signsThe latest probe questions the effectiveness of Waymo's software recall from 2025.Engadget · 9 Nov, 16:16
• Waymo robotaxis kept illegally passing school buses after software fix, feds sayThe update to Waymo's self-driving system was rolled out nearly a year ago.TechCrunch · 9 Nov, 15:24

In this story: Waymo · National Highway Traffic Safety Administration · Austin Independent School District · Atlanta · Austin · Santa Monica

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log