Documents indicate that Uber was having AV issues long before Arizona crash.

Continuing coverage of the March 18 incident in which an Uber AV killed an Arizona fatality focuses on Uber’s issues with its AV technology. The New York Times (3/23, Wakabayashi, Subscription Publication, 13.35M) reported that Uber’s autonomous vehicle tests were “not living up to expectations months before” the fatal crash, based on documents seen by the Times and on interviews with people familiar with the Uber tests in the Phoenix area. Uber’s autonomous vehicles had difficulty “driving through construction zones and next to tall vehicles, like big rigs,” the Times reports, and its drivers “had to intervene far more frequently than the drivers of competing autonomous car projects.” In fact, “as of March, Uber was struggling to meet its target of 13 miles per ‘intervention’ in Arizona.” Waymo says its vehicles average about 5,600 miles per intervention by the safety drivers.

        Fortune (3/24, Morris, 4.04M) reports the Times report said Uber reduced the number of safety drivers in its test vehicles from two to one, “over the safety concerns of some employees” and despite the relatively frequent driving errors by the autonomous vehicles. At the same time, internally, “the leadership of Uber’s self-driving car unit has frequently been described as troubled, with high levels of engineer attrition.” There may have also been pressure on the autonomous vehicle developers to bring a road-ready system to market as soon as possible in order “to square the financial circle” of Uber’s finances “by taking driver pay out of the equation” and helping to build profitability at a company that “regularly posts quarterly losses with few historical parallels.”

        Business Insider (3/24, Matousek, 4.81M) reports Uber “has spent the better part of the past year cleaning up the mess left by former CEO Travis Kalanick, who oversaw the company’s meteoric rise and turned it in into a symbol for the ruthless, growth-at-all-costs attitude that has come to represent the dark side of Silicon Valley.” The latest hit to the company’s wider reputation in light of the pedestrian fatality means that “even if Uber can perfect its self-driving technology by mid-2019, when it hopes to launch an autonomous ride-hailing service, city governments might not trust the company enough to work with them.” Jalopnik (3/24, Werth, 1.22M) reports that CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, “brought in to clean up Uber” after Kalanick was ousted, considered “shutting down the self-driving car project” entirely.

        The San Jose (CA) Mercury News (3/23, 514K) reported that the Times says Uber, “trying to reinvent itself after sexual harassment and leadership scandals,” was “under pressure to get its autonomous-driving ride-sharing program up and running for public use by the end of the year, while the cars were having trouble driving themselves safely and the company was reducing human backup.”

        Ars Technica (3/24, 686K) writes that “insiders have long viewed Uber as a laggard in the driverless car race,” but the documents obtained by the Times “suggest that the company’s self-driving car program may be even further behind its rivals than had been publicly known.” The San Francisco Chronicle (3/23, 3M) reported that according to experts, “neither Uber’s technology nor its backup driver seemed ready for the open road.”

Police release footage of autonomous Uber accident.

In continuing coverage of the fatal accident involving a self-driving Uber vehicle, ABC World News Tonight (3/21, story 10, 0:15, Muir, 14.63M) reported on its nightly broadcast that Tempe police released footage of the incident immediately prior to the collision. ABC said of the footage, “It does appear there was little time to do anything,” and there have not been any charges filed at this point.

        The Washington (DC) Post (3/21, Laris, 15.96M) reports that the video also shows the backup driver, Rafaela Vasquez, looking down “several times” prior to the collision. Uber said in a statement, “The video is disturbing and heartbreaking to watch, and our thoughts continue to be with Elaine’s loved ones. Our cars remain grounded, and we’re assisting local, state and federal authorities in any way we can.” Tempe police said they cut the footage before “the collision itself due to the graphic nature of the impact.” Automotive News (3/21, Burke, 182K) says the footage shows the driver “did not have [her] eyes on the road.” Automotive News says their analysis of the video found that the driver would have had about 1.2 seconds between when the pedestrian’s shoes enter the light and the end of the video.

        The Los Angeles Times (3/21, Mitchell, 4.81M) reports that “speculation” that the self-driving vehicle was not at fault “may temper any public or political backlash” due to the intrinsic fear of new technology. The Times reports that evidence shows that self-driving vehicles are likely to reduce crash and fatality rates, but automakers will have to prove this to the public.

        Bloomberg News (3/21, Beene, Levin, 3.41M) reports Sunday’s accident is unlikely to result in regulators slowing the testing of autonomous vehicles. Bloomberg reports the Obama Administration made “efforts to streamline regulations to accommodate the emerging technology,” and the Trump Administration’s “aversion to restrictions and regulations makes it even more unlikely that the accident in Tempe...will result in significant new barriers.” Bloomberg says legislation supported by self-driving vehicle developers “sailed through the House with unanimous support last year,” but a Senate version of the bill “has since stalled amid calls for stronger oversight.” Bloomberg reports policy guidance released by Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao “used the word ‘voluntary’ 57 times.”

        Reuters (3/21) quotes University of South Carolina law professor and self-driving car expert Bryant Walker Smith saying, “Although this video isn’t the full picture, it strongly suggests a failure by Uber’s automated driving system and a lack of due care by Uber’s driver (and by the victim).” Carnegie Mellon University professor Raj Rajkumar concurred, saying, “The sensors should have detected the pedestrian in this case; the cameras were likely useless but both the radars and the Lidar must have picked up the pedestrian.” He added, “Though no information is available, one would have to conclude based on this video alone, that there are problems in the Uber vehicle software that need to be rectified.”

        In his column on Reuters (3/21), John Kemp writes that Sunday’s accident “will mark an important test of the technology but also of the ability of politicians, regulators and the media to think about risk in an intelligent way.” Kemp says that autonomous vehicles will not completely eliminate the risks of driving, so the issue should be whether self-driving vehicles increase or decrease the “already relatively dangerous” act of driving. Kemp advocates for “sensible and balanced safety regulations” which “requires a very transparent approach from the technology companies and a calm and reasoned response from politicians, regulators and journalists.”

        Additional coverage included USA Today (3/21, Garcia, Randazzo, Republic, 9.51M), NPR (3/21, 2.7M), the Los Angeles (CA) Times (3/21, Mitchell, 4.81M), Bloomberg News (3/21, Beene, 3.41M), Automotive News (3/21, 182K), Automotive News (3/20, 182K), Automotive News (3/21, 182K), the Dallas (TX) Morning News (3/21, Rice, Reporter, 982K), Cars (3/21, 842K), Car Connection (3/21, 120K), Car and Driver (3/21, 9.61M), WABC-TV New York (NY) New York (3/21, 299K), Jalopnik (3/21, 1.22M), TechCrunch (3/21, 688K), The Verge (3/21, 1.77M), Venture Beat (3/21, 78K), Re/code (3/21, 262K), Fortune (3/21, 4.04M), and WLUC-TV Marquette, MI (3/21, 2:11 a.m. EDT, 77K).

New recall includes 229,000 newer Dodge Ram trucks.

MLive (MI) (2/26, 732K) reports that Fiat Chrysler Automotive issued a recall for 229,000 model year 2017 and 2018 Dodge Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500 series pickups, because of a “risk the vehicles could shift out of park without the ignition engaged or a foot on the brake.” In December 2017, FCA issued a recall for 1.8 million other Ram pickup trucks. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warns that “if the brake pedal is pushed in for too long while running and in park, a pin could become stuck in the open position and increase the risk of a rollaway.” The recall is scheduled to start March 30, with dealers making repairs at no cost to customers. 

Robot Cars and Crash Avoidance Technologies

Atlee Hall attorney Jaime Jackson spoke about Crash Avoidance Technologies and Robot Cars to a national group of paralegals gathered at a conference in San Antonio, Texas. The presentation focused on how new technologies are affecting the transportation industry, products liability and how we practice law. Questions discussed included if the robot technology is driving the car, can the human occupant still be liable, or is the manufacturer responsible when the technology fails and a crash happens? Mr. Jackson covered with the group various crash avoidance technologies such as Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Warnings, Lane Keep Assist and Blind Spot Assist. Robot cars and highly automated vehicles were also discussed, with GM promising to roll out its ride services fully autonomous vehicle without a steering wheel or gas pedals in 2019. Waymo was just awarded permission in Arizona to operate its ride sharing services vehicle without gas pedals and steering wheels for public transportation on Arizona roadways. The automotive landscape and the way human beings are transported is rapidly changing with a fundamental paradigm shift in car ownership, ride sharing services and robot cars. Mr. Jackson who has litigated automotive products liability cases for twenty years has spent the last several years working on crash avoidance technologies and robot cars preparing for the future of transportation.

Recall issued on 1.5 million Ram pickups.

Consumer Reports (2/22, Olsen, 3.59M) reports Ram is recalling about 1.5 million pickup trucks in the US, “mostly” heavy-duty models, because of “a problem with the gear shifter, which is mounted on the steering column.” The recall notice recommends that drivers “always” use parking brakes. 

Fiat Chrysler sending recall notices to 160,000 Pacifica owners.

WRC-TV Washington (2/20, Royster, 376K) reports Fiat Chrysler is sending more than 160,000 recall notices to Pacifica owners this week. Certain minivans from the 2017 model year “are being recalled because their engines can stall, even while driving down the road.” Dealers will “begin offering a free software fix next week.” Over 50 Pacifica minivan owners “filed a complaint to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.” The Company “is working closely with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and this recall is being conducted in accordance with regulation.” 

Toyota announces separate recalls for Toyota, Lexus cars.

Consumer Reports (2/15, 3.59M) reports Toyota announced two separate recalls on Thursday, recalling 11,800 model year 2018 Camrys and 9,000 model year 2015-2018 Lexus RC F, 2016-2018 Lexus GS F, and 2018 Lexus LC 500 cars. CR reports the Camry models are being recalled because “the fuel pipes and the fuel hoses in the engine compartment were not properly connected during assembly,” which could cause a fuel leak and increase the chance of a fire. The Lexus vehicles are being recalled because “the cover of a high-pressure fuel pump could become damaged over time and lead to a fuel leak and an increased risk of fire.”