San Francisco

San Francisco officials meet with Waymo to discuss school crossing guards' safety concerns

The meeting follows an NBC Bay Area investigation which revealed eerily similar safety complaints from crossing guards, claiming Waymo driverless vehicles nearly hit them while guiding children along crosswalks

By Bigad Shaban • •

NBC Universal, Inc.

San Francisco transportation officials met with representatives from Waymo this week to address ongoing safety concerns from school crossing guards, who say they’ve almost been hit by the company’s driverless cars while ushering children and their families through crosswalks. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban reports.

San Francisco transportation officials met with representatives from Waymo this week to address ongoing safety concerns from school crossing guards, who say they’ve almost been hit by the company’s driverless cars while ushering children and their families through crosswalks.

City officials and Waymo confirmed the hour-long meeting meeting took place in-person on Wednesday and covered a range of topics.

Watch NBC Bay Area News 📺 Streaming free 24/7

The discussion included conversations about the potential safety risks Waymo’s vehicles are accused of posing near schools, according to a spokesperson for San Francisco Mayor London Breed.

The meeting comes on the heels of an NBC Bay Area investigation, which surveyed 30 school crossing guards stationed at more than 20 different schools across San Francisco. While some said they believed autonomous vehicles were safer than their human counterparts, nearly one in four crossing guards reported experiencing at least one “close call” in the crosswalk with a Waymo robotaxi, where they either had to rush out of the way to avoid being hit or said the car had to break abruptly to avoid a collision.

Waymo and SF officials have 'constructive discussion' about safety concerns

In advance of the upcoming school year, San Francisco’s roughly 170 school crossing guards attended a mandatory safety training that included a new portion specifically focused on autonomous vehicles. The revamped training comes in the wake of an NBC Bay Area investigation that revealed serious safety concerns from school crossing guards, who said they were nearly hit by Waymo self-driving vehicles while helping children and their families cross the street. Senior Investigative Reporter Bigad Shaban talks about the latest developments with Anchor Janelle Wang.

A spokesperson from Waymo called the meeting with city officials a “constructive discussion,” adding “this is an important opportunity for us to hear feedback as well as to share more details about our technology, including how our vehicles communicate with other road users.”

Waymo, owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, has repeatedly stated that it stands by its safety record and says its cars are programmed to give pedestrians enough time to safely make their way through a crosswalk. 

Investigation Jul 29

SF mayor promises accountability after school crossing guards tell NBC Bay Area driverless cars almost hit them

San Francisco Aug 14

Waymo says it's issued a fix for overnight honking from driverless cars in San Francisco

Head of crossing guard union said city officials wouldn't allow him to attend Waymo meeting

Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.

Absent from the meeting was Joel Kamisher, the union representative for the city’s more than 170 school crossing guards.

Kamisher told NBC Bay Area he had hoped to attend so he could learn what was being done to keep crossing guards and students safe, but he said city officials would not allow it. Kamisher, however, said he remains optimistic since both sides agreed to discuss crossing guards’ concerns. 

“I hope that the people that work for Waymo will realize it’s in their best interest to cooperate with the city and all the regulators to be candid about what goes wrong and acknowledge it, and learn from it, and improve from it,” Kamisher said.

"Waymo has got to be a good corporate citizen...and learn from their mistakes and make corrections."

A recent NBC Bay Area investigation revealed crossing guards stationed at different schools across San Francisco said they were nearly hit by Waymo driverless cars while guiding children and their families along crosswalks. Bigad Shaban reports.

SF leaders aren't saying much about what was discussed with Waymo team

It’s unclear what San Francisco leaders hope will come from the meeting or why Kamisher was not granted access, as city transportation officials and the mayor’s office declined to provide those details or sit down with NBC Bay Area for an interview. 

In a statement, the mayor’s office said it expects all vehicles, including driverless cars, to comply with the rules of the road.

In San Francisco, students are scheduled to head back to school next week, which means crossing guards will again return to their assigned posts at intersections across the city.  Ahead of their arrival, San Francisco transportation officials revamped its biannual training sessions for crossing guards to include, for the first time, safety discussions about driverless vehicles, which cross guards were required to attend earlier this month. 

“They gave some common-sense tips about things to do, like make sure that the [driverless] car has come to a complete stop before you step out,” Kamisher said. “They also asked us to start reporting any kind of close encounters we have.”

Watch our entire investigative series

Contact The Investigative Unit

submit tips | 1-888-996-TIPS | e-mail Bigad

This article tagged under:

San Francisco
Exit mobile version