California Kicks Cruise’s Driverless Cars , off the Road.
California's Department of Motor Vehicles suspended the autonomous vehicles over safety concerns on Oct. 24, NPR reports.
When there is an unreasonable risk to public safety, the DMV can immediately suspend or revoke permits. There is no set time for a suspension, California DMV spokesperson, via statement.
The action comes after one of Cruise's vehicles
hit a pedestrian in San Francisco on Oct. 2.
She was pinned under the car and had to be freed with the jaws of life, sustaining critical injuries.
A Cruise spokesperson issued a statement.
Our teams are currently doing
an analysis to identify potential enhancements to the AV's response
to this kind of extremely rare event, Navideh Forghani, a Cruise spokesperson, via statement.
Cruise vehicles that are accompanied
by a human driver will still be
allowed to operate in California.
The company was originally granted a permit for 300 driverless cars in San Francisco.
but after one of them hit a firetruck in August, the DMV reduced their permit to 150 driverless vehicles.
The cars have also been documented
running red lights, rear-ending a bus, blocking crosswalks and interfering with rescue operations.
The company's suspension in California comes as parent company GM recently announced plans to expand the program in the U.S. .
The company's suspension in California comes as parent company GM recently announced plans to expand the program in the U.S.