Dec 09, 2025 15:15:00

Waymo robotaxis illegally overtake parked school buses, prompting software recall

Waymo, a self-driving car development company under Alphabet, currently operates robotaxis in several US states and

plans to expand to more states and countries by 2026. Following a regulatory investigation into a Waymo robotaxi that reportedly failed to comply with traffic safety regulations when passing a stopped school bus, Waymo officials acknowledged the issue and announced a voluntary software recall.

Waymo to issue recall over self-driving vehicles driving past stopped school buses | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/world/waymo-issue-recall-over-self-driving-vehicles-driving-past-stopped-school-buses-2025-12-05/

US probes Alphabet unit Waymo robotaxis over school bus safety | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/business/us-investigates-waymo-robotaxis-over-safety-around-school-buses-2025-10-20/

Waymo's robotaxis are under investigation for passing stopped school buses | The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/news/838879/waymo-school-buses-probe

In October 2025, it was reported that a robotaxi violated road traffic regulations in Georgia. Footage of the accident showed that the school bus had its red flashing lights on and 'stop arms' deployed on the side of the bus to ensure safety when picking up children, and that despite the law requiring all passing vehicles to come to a complete halt, the Waymo vehicle passed by the school bus without stopping. Below is a picture of the stop arms deployed by Bus Safety Solutions, which works to improve child safety.

Following the report, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Administration (NTSA) launched a preliminary investigation into approximately 2,000 self-driving vehicles. 'Based on our discussions with Waymo regarding this incident and the accumulated mileage, it is highly likely that similar incidents have occurred in the past,' the agency said.

The investigation involved a regulatory review of how the self-driving technology interacts with pedestrians, cyclists, and other road users. At the time the investigation began, a Waymo spokesperson said, 'We have already developed and implemented improvements related to stopping school buses,' and that the issue had been fixed with an additional software update.

However, in a letter sent to Waymo by the Austin Independent School District in Texas on November 20, 2025, it was reported that there had been 19 cases of Waymo robotaxis passing parked school buses, at least five of which occurred after Waymo stated that it had fixed the issue with a software update. The district then demanded that Waymo immediately suspend the operation of its self-driving service during student pickup and drop-off times.

Following the series of reports, Waymo's Chief Safety Officer, Mauricio Pena, issued a statement saying, 'Maintaining the highest safety standards means recognizing when to improve our behavior. We believe that the software update has significantly improved performance, but the phenomenon of a robotaxi recognizing a school bus, initially slowing down or stopping, and then resuming its movement and overtaking, was partly due to a software issue. ' Furthermore, the company has announced that it will apply for a voluntary recall of its software regarding appropriate slowing and stopping to the National Transportation Safety Administration.

A Waymo spokesperson said, 'The software recall applies the latest software update and we will continue to track and implement additional updates as needed.'

The National Transportation Safety Administration has asked Waymo to respond by January 20, 2026, asking whether the problematic service has been stopped and whether the software update fixes have been implemented.