What can go wrong?

‘No driver, no hands, no clue’: Driverless car pulled over on Bay Area road

By Gillian Mohney

Police were left baffled last week after pulling over a car without anyone behind the wheel in San Bruno. Officers were taking part in DUI enforcement when they observed a Waymo car making an illegal U-turn right in front of them.

They pulled the car over, but since it had no human occupants, they were unable to issue a ticket. Driverless cars are unable to be cited for traffic violations unless there is a human safety driver in the vehicle.

San Bruno police wrote in a social media post Saturday they alerted Waymo to the “glitch” and that their citation books don’t have a box for “robot.” 

“Hopefully the reprogramming will keep it from making any more illegal moves,” police wrote in the post. 

In an emailed statement to SFGATE, Waymo said it was investigating the incident. 

“Waymo’s autonomous driving system, the Waymo Driver, is designed to respect the rules of the road. We are looking into this situation and are committed to improving road safety through our ongoing learnings and experience,” Waymo spokesperson Julia Ilina told SFGATE. 

Waymo has quickly expanded its footprint in the Bay Area after officially debuting in San Francisco in 2024. The company’s white Jaguars have become a ubiquitous sight on Bay Area streets in recent years and even an attraction for visiting tourists. Waymo was recently granted approval to operate at San Francisco Airport.