Police in San Bruno, California, found themselves in a tricky situation when they pulled over a self-driving Waymo taxi for making an illegal U-turn—only to discover there was no one behind the wheel to ticket. The incident happened during a DUI operation earlier this month, according to the San Bruno Police Department.
Officers spotted the Waymo vehicle committing the illegal turn and stopped it. But without a human driver to hold responsible, they couldn’t issue a citation. "No driver, no hands, no clue," the police department joked on Facebook, sharing photos of an officer inspecting the empty car.
The police reached out to Waymo to report what they called a “glitch,” hoping the company’s engineers would fix the mistake and prevent future illegal moves. The department’s post quickly went viral, sparking hundreds of comments. Many people were frustrated that the company wasn’t fined and curious about how the officers managed to get the car to stop.
San Bruno Sergeant Scott Smithmatungol explained that the police can only ticket human drivers for moving violations. Unlike parking tickets, which can be left on a vehicle, moving violations require a person behind the wheel. However, starting next year, a new California law will allow officers to report such violations directly to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Officials are still working out the details, including possible penalties.
Waymo, owned by Alphabet (Google’s parent company), currently runs autonomous taxis in Phoenix, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, including the San Bruno area. A company spokesperson said that Waymo’s autonomous driving system is closely monitored, and they are reviewing the incident with safety as their priority.
San Bruno is a small city of about 40,000 people with a police force of 50 officers. Sgt. Smithmatungol said the viral attention caught them by surprise. The incident highlights the challenges courts and law enforcement face as self-driving cars become more common on the roads.