Driverless cars ‘not ready for prime time’: Fire chief
- GM recently recalled its 950 Cruise driverless vehicles
- The suspension comes after multiple safety incidents
- SF fire chief: ‘I’m not anti-technology, I’m just pro-public safety’
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(NewsNation) — Following a steady stream of incidents, San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson thinks driverless cars still need some improvement before they can safely hit the streets.
Nicholson’s perspective comes after General Motors recently announced its temporary recall of all 950 Cruise driverless vehicles.
“Cruise has suspended all of their autonomous robo taxis, if you will, for right now. But the problem was that they were not ready for prime time when they were permitted on the streets,” Nicholson said during a Thursday interview with “On Balance” host Leland Vittert.
Nicholson told Vittert there was little regulation on driverless car companies and lots of money behind the wheel.
“So, you know, they just got pushed through,” Nicholson said, later adding: “I’m not anti-technology, I’m just pro-public safety. There still needs to be some things worked out so that these vehicles are safe.”
In San Francisco, self-driving cars have been involved in crashes, driven into dangerous areas including construction zones and have struck at least one pedestrian. Last month, the California Department of Motor Vehicles suspended Cruise’s autonomous vehicle deployment and driverless testing permits, citing an “unreasonable risk to public safety.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says vehicles with partial or full automation could possibly help decrease crashes, offer new mobility options to more people and could lead to better environmental practices.
Nicholson said driverless vehicles may be able to help in certain situations, such as potentially reducing drunk driving incidents, in the future. But she insists: “They’re still not ready for prime time.”
“We’ve been pointing it (problems) out for a long time, and we finally have some traction with these companies. We’re working on solutions to some of this stuff,” Nicholson said.
According to the NHTSA, there is no vehicle currently available for sale that is fully “self-driving.” Only certain states have permitted a limited number of self-driving cars for research, testing and pilot programs that are overseen by NHTSA and the U.S. Department of Transportation.
KRON reports contributed to this report.
