California has put the GM Cruise self-driving cars on hold due to safety concerns. The decision is the latest example of regulatory organisations expressing concern about the safety of self-driving cars.
California has put the GM Cruise self-driving cars on hold due to safety concerns
The state of California in the United States has halted testing of General Motors (GM) Cruise self-driving cars, citing safety concerns following a string of accidents and incidents.
On Tuesday, California’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) announced that it has banned the deployment of GM self-driving vehicles and autonomous testing permits, becoming the fourth regulatory agency to express worries about their safety.
“When there is an unreasonable risk to public safety, the DMV can immediately suspend or revoke permits,” the government responded to AFP’s inquiries. The public has had conflicting views of self-driving cars, with some seeing them as an exciting technological breakthrough and others seeing them as a nuisance or hazard.
The suspension comes after a string of collisions involving Cruise vehicles and represents a significant blow to GM’s aspirations to break into the autonomous vehicle business. In a statement, Cruise stated that it will be “pausing operations” in San Francisco.
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Automakers such as General Motors have staked their future on self-driving cars, but others have struggled to gain traction or overcome public and government agency fears.
Cruise was earlier described as a “giant growth opportunity” by GM. In June, Cruise CEO Mary Barra reiterated her projection that the company would produce $50 billion in yearly revenue by 2030. On Tuesday, the corporation revealed that it lost more than $720 million on Cruise in the third quarter of this year.
On October 2, a woman in San Francisco was hit and run, putting her in the path of an oncoming autonomous vehicle controlled by Cruise. According to a business spokeswoman, the car “braked aggressively to minimise the impact” at the time.
The automobile then remained on top of the victim, trapping her beneath it until rescuers came. Barra has maintained that self-driving cars are safer than those driven by humans.
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