AUSTIN, Texas — A Waymo vehicle was caught on video parked beyond a railroad crossing gate in Austin, with a CapMetro train passing just feet away.
And that was not the only time it happened.
Waymo confirmed two separate incidents in Austin in which driverless vehicles braked after crossing lights activated and came to a stop 2.5 meters before the tracks, past the lowered crossing gate arm. After each train passed and the gate lifted, the vehicles reversed before proceeding.
The first incident occurred March 7. In both cases, no riders were present in either vehicle.
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In the first incident, the vehicle was traveling at 22 mph when crossing lights activated as flashing red while it was approximately 12.7 meters from the gate. The vehicle applied medium braking and stopped 2.5 meters before the tracks.
In the second incident, the vehicle was traveling at 21 mph when lights activated at approximately 13.6 meters out. That vehicle applied hard braking and also stopped 2.5 meters before the tracks.
Waymo said its vehicles are capable of moving through barriers like gate arms when safety requires, but in both cases the system determined it was at a safe distance from the tracks.
“We recognize the concern caused by stopping past the crossing gate,” a Waymo spokesperson said. “We are temporarily restricting traversals at similar crossings while we conduct a thorough analysis and refine our system’s response.”
Waymo said its vehicles have traversed railroad crossings millions of times fully autonomously.
CapMetro provided the following statement:
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“CapMetro is aware of a video circulating online depicting a Waymo vehicle at a CapMetro rail crossing. CapMetro alerted Waymo and has requested immediate action to ensure safety at all rail crossings within their operating area.”