Cruise closes one robotaxi investigation with a recall

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is closing an investigation from 2022 into the GM-owned robotaxi company. The agency was looking into Cruise vehicles that stopped unexpectedly, including three times where they were struck from behind.

From the report (included in full below):

Based on ODI’s analysis of immobilization data, the potential safety risk is heavily dependent on the context of the immobilized vehicle’s location, detectability of the vehicle due to hazard lights automatically engaging, and none of the immobilization incidents reviewed resulted in a crash or injuries.

ODI also analyzed hard braking data which included 7,632 hard braking events commanded by the Cruise ADS. These events were determined by certain thresholds, including rate of deceleration, without regard to the appropriateness of the braking. ODI determined that Cruise vehicles contributed to 10 crashes that were reported under the Standing General Order 2021-01 (SGO), 4 of which involved a vulnerable road user and resulted in injury

As reported by Reuters, Cruise disagreed about issuing a recall over the issue but did so with a software update applied to Cruise vehicles last month “intended to reduce the risk of unexpected braking maneuvers, including by improvements to perception, prediction, and planning.”

The now-closed investigation is separate from the California incident last year, where a pedestrian in San Francisco was struck by one of its vehicles and dragged for over 20 feet. Investigations into the accident by multiple agencies are continuing, and Cruise is still banned in California. Cruise responded to that incident with another recall.

After the pedestrian incident, Cruise announced in April that it was resuming fleet testing without passengers, and it later installed a new CEO. In June, GM announced an $850 million investment in Cruise to cover its operational costs and keep the company afloat while it works on getting the cars back on the road.