A swarm of Cruise robotaxes blocked San Francisco traffic for hours

A small fleet of Cruise robotaxes in San Francisco suddenly stopped working Tuesday night, effectively stopping traffic on a street in the city’s Fillmore district for several hours until workers arrived. TechCrunch first perceived a Reddit Message It included a photo of driverless taxis standing at the corner of Gough and Fulton streets. Cruise, General Motor’s AV subsidiary, launched its commercial robotaxis service in the city last week. The rides have no human safety drivers, are geographically restricted to certain streets, and can only operate late in the evening.

Cruise apologized for the incident in a statement, but offered little explanation as to what caused the mishap. “We had an issue earlier this week that caused some of our vehicles to clump together,” a Cruise spokesperson said. Declaration with TechCrunch. “While the issue has been resolved and no passengers were affected, we apologize to anyone for the inconvenience.”

The GM-backed AV startup won the first driverless taxi permit in a major US city and began offering free rides to San Francisco residents in February. After launching its paid passenger service on June 24, early comments began pouring in from Cruise passengers. A passenger in a cruise car unusually long road to arrive home. Another passenger seemed to have a more positive experience, even leaving a cash tip for the driverless car.

This week’s traffic jam appears to be Cruise’s first major hurdle, at least for its commercial service. In April, police stopped a Cruise car for failing to turn on its headlights. Officers were unsure how to proceed after discovering that there were no people behind the wheel.

The State of California requires AV companies to report any collision involving property damage, bodily harm or death to the DMV, which publishes data online. 18 total reports Filed this year, which includes cruise vehicles.