In a first, Google has shared responsibility for a Valentine's Day road collision involving a self-driving car and a public bus in Mountain View, Calif.
A video released by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority shows a Lexus SUV outfitted with Google's AV tech getting bumped on the side by an approaching bus, in what Google has described as a case of "misunderstanding." The SUV sustained considerable body damage while the bus and its occupants largely remained unscathed. The SUV's human driver also escaped injuries.
A DMV report on the incident notes the Lexus was eastbound on El Camino Real, driving in the far-right lane. After signaling its intent to turn right at an intersection, the car inched its way to the right. It was nicked by the bus approaching at 15 mph when it veered left around sandbags that blocked its path. The car was in autonomous mode, but its human driver noticed the approaching bus. A camera grab of the incident from within the bus shows the bus driver and passengers noticing the collision.
"Our test driver, who had been watching the bus in the mirror, also expected the bus to slow or stop," Google said. "And we can imagine the bus driver assumed we were going to stay put."
The incident set off an argument over right of way in the incident. Comments on the video showed contrasting views; some blamed Google while others held the driver responsible. Questions were raised over the bus driver not wearing a seat belt and Google's response taking only part of the blame.
"In this case, we clearly bear some responsibility, because if our car hadn't moved there wouldn't have been a collision," the company said. It also said refinements have been made to its software to make its cars understand the unlikelihood of larger vehicles yielding to smaller ones.
The transportation authority ruled out the responsibility of the bus driver. Google explained its car and human driver expected the bus to yield.
Though not the first collision involving its self-driving cars, the Feb. 14 incident marks the first in which Google shared the blame. Its fleet of autonomous vehicles have driven more than 1.4 million miles since 2009.
