Driverless car takes off after baffled cops try to pull it over
Published on Apr 12, 2022 at 9:42 AM (UTC+4)
by Patrick Jackson
Last updated on Apr 12, 2022 at 5:23 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
Police officers were left perplexed during a routine traffic stop when they pulled over an autonomous car with no driver.
Footage uploaded to Instagram by @b.rad916 shows the puzzled cops stopping a Chevrolet Bolt operated by the Cruise self-driving ride service in San Francisco.
Making matters only worse for the Richmond District officers, the driverless car then unexpectedly started to drive off.
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However, the driverless car stopped itself shortly after on the next block with its hazard lights on, giving the officers an opportunity to make some calls and figure out how to deal with the vehicle.
Police wanted to stop the car because it did not have its headlights on.
The vehicle would not have been able to control this if the automatic headlight function was not enabled.
Onlookers were amused by the display, with one pedestrian heard in the video proclaiming: “Ain’t nobody in it, this is crazy.”
Despite the vehicle driving off on the officers looking like disobedience, Cruise issued a statement on its official Twitter account noting it responded “as intended” by moving to a safer location for the stop.
“Chiming in with more details: our AV yielded to the police vehicle, then pulled over to the nearest safe location for the traffic stop, as intended,” the statement read.
“An officer contacted Cruise personnel and no citation was issued.”
Cruise – a San Francisco-based rival to companies like Waymo, is backed by General Motors and Honda – operates a fleet of Chevy Bolts in the metro area for both ride sharing and delivery services.
The company recently announced it had been selected by the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority to provide driverless taxis.
A fleet of 10 taxis will be on roads within the next year.
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A car zealot from a young age, Patrick has put his childhood spent obsessing over motoring magazines and TV shows to good use over the past six years as a journalist. Fuelled by premium octane coffee, he’s contributed to Finder, DriveTribe, WhichCar, Vehicle History and Drive Section.
