Frozen Waymos backed up San Francisco traffic during a widespread power outage

Source: The Verge

Incident Overview

Waymo driverless car is not able to detect traffic lights after a major power outage in San Francisco, California. Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images.

A power outage struck San Francisco on Saturday that blacked out about 130,000 customers at its peak, according to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E). The outage disrupted the city’s traffic‑signal network, causing the autonomous vehicle to lose its ability to recognize traffic lights. Waymo confirmed that its driverless cars rely on external traffic‑signal data and that the loss of power temporarily disabled this functionality. The company is working with city officials to restore full service and ensure the safety of its autonomous fleet.