Waymo robotaxis are going to be popping back onto Bay Area freeways in the coming days, following a voluntary six-week recall in which the company’s software was updated to better handle emergency road closures and construction.<\/p>\n
You may recall the somewhat scary videos that emerged two months ago<\/a> of Waymos seeming to go rogue in freeway construction zones, like the one below (which is mostly audio, with a description on X).<\/p>\n The Waymo blasted through cones, swerved huge trucks and sped away from the cops. <\/p>\n Was kinda freaking out, had my girl in the seat next to me. You can get the sirens. <\/p>\n Genuinely the freakiest experience I\u2019ve ever had, felt utterly helpless. <\/p>\n These are not ready for highways. pic.twitter.com\/S1HNQx0VGh<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 QuietLight (@Elliot_slade) May 19, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Waymo didn’t exactly admit what was going on, but they admitted there was some sort of problem, saying at the time, “We have temporarily paused freeway operations, as we work to integrate recent technical learnings into our software and expect to resume these routes soon.”<\/p>\n On Thursday, Waymo announced<\/a> that it was ending the recall and resuming freeway service, beginning in Phoenix, with other cities “to follow.” A spokesperson for the company tells TechCrunch<\/a> that the cars will be back on freeways in the Bay Area and Los Angeles within days.<\/p>\n The company’s statement said that freeway service was resuming “after implementing software updates designed to improve performance around freeway construction zones.” This includes “advanced scene recognition” as well as routing.<\/p>\n Because of the various glitches with the sometimes over-cautious, sometimes unpredictable robocars that we’ve seen on SF streets in the last couple of years, the introduction of freeway service seemed bound to come with some snafus. Luckily, those snafus haven’t resulted in death or injury, at least not yet.<\/p>\n Waymo service is now fully available<\/a> between San Francisco and every urban area down the Peninsula to San Jose, as well as to San Francisco International Airport<\/a>.<\/p>\n The resumption of Waymos driving on freeways comes a dicey time for autonomous vehicles politically, with both local and congressional figures now pushing for tightening regulations around them. <\/p>\n Mayor Daniel Lurie is still dealing with the fallout from the July 4th fiasco, with disabled Waymos likely being at least partly to blame for some of the massive traffic congestion<\/a>. Lurie called on state regulators<\/a> this month to craft some new regulations for autonomous taxis during large events and emergencies.<\/p>\n And Representative Kevin Mullin, who represents San Mateo County in Congress, has authored a bill<\/a> that seeks to create nationwide standards that would require autonomous vehicle companies to be in better communication with first responders and local officials during emergencies. Lurie has voiced his support<\/a> for that bill as well.<\/p>\n Previously: Waymo Temporarily Suspends Freeway Service After Weird Construction Zone Incident Goes Viral<\/a><\/p>\n