Video from the Austin Independent School District in Texas shows Waymo autonomous vehicles driving past stationary school buses in 2025, raising new concerns about the technology’s safety.
A US safety agency has opened an investigation into Waymo after its autonomous vehicles were allegedly caught driving past stopped school buses in Austin, Texas, according to a letter sent to the company by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on December 3.
AISD footage shows at least 19 incidents since the start of the school year in which Waymo vehicles drove past stopped school buses with red lights flashing and stop arms extended, while pedestrians were visibly walking in nearby streets and crosswalks. The videos show that in some cases, Waymo vehicles initially slowed down or stopped in front of school buses before continuing on.
In a letter to the company, NHTSA said it has opened a review into “the performance of the Waymo ADS around stopped school buses and the system’s ability to follow traffic safety laws related to school buses.”
PASSENGER IN WAYMO SELF-DRIVING CAR IS STUCK AROUND PARKING LOT WHILE TRYING TO FLEE
The agency added that “such unexpected driving behavior or failure to comply with traffic safety laws regarding school buses may increase the risk of accidents, injuries and property damage.”
“Despite numerous requests, Waymo has refused to cease operations,” Snee said.
“Additionally, we presented them with another video, dated December 1, 2025, showing one of their vehicles passing another of our buses while the students were loading. In this case, the bus was and was stopped with a flashing red light and activated for almost a full minute before their vehicle passed – an unequivocal violation of state law.”
UBER AND WAYMO LAUNCH ‘INTEREST LIST’ FOR AUTONOMOUS TRIPS IN ATLANTA
Sneed added that Waymo was notified of the issue in mid-November, and while the company said it has since resolved the issue, the alleged violations have continued.
“They reported that program changes were implemented in mid-November to correct previous violations. However, the December 1, 2025 incident indicates that those program changes did not resolve the problem or our concerns,” Sneed said.
Reuters previously reported that AISD said in a Nov. 20 letter posted by NHTSA that five incidents occurred that month after Waymo said it made software updates to address the problem.
WAYMO REVOLVES 1,200 DRIVERLESS VEHICLES FOR SOFTWARE UPDATE
The company said the updates “significantly improved performance” to levels even better than human drivers. Waymo also claimed that records show Waymo acted cautiously when no one was present.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
“Improving road safety is our top priority at Waymo and we have invested heavily in safe interactions with school buses. We have quickly implemented software updates to address this and will continue to improve rapidly,” a Waymo spokesperson said.
The investigation comes as Waymo reportedly plans to expand its self-driving service to Dallas in 2026. FOX 4Dallaswho added that the company is currently testing its vehicles in the city.
