Waymo, an autonomous vehicle company owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, stated that its autonomous vehicle performed in line with design expectations when the traffic light went out at the intersection, that is, treated it as a “four-way parking” intersection. The problem is scale. The statement stated that when Waymo encounters a situation where the traffic light goes out, “occasionally, it may request confirmation checks” to “ensure that the safest choice is made.” “Although we successfully passed more than 7,000 lights that went out last Saturday, the power outage caused an instant surge in such requests.” The company added, “This created a backlog of tasks and in some cases delayed response, which increased traffic pressure on already congested streets.” The company also said it suspended its services in San Francisco because city officials requested that streets be cleared to allow aid workers to pass through. Waymo added: “This ensures we don't further increase congestion or obstruct emergency vehicles during peak rescue periods.”

Waymo, an autonomous vehicle company owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, stated that its autonomous vehicle performed in line with design expectations when the traffic light went out at the intersection, that is, treated it as a “four-way parking” intersection. The problem is scale. The statement stated that when Waymo encounters a situation where the traffic light goes out, “occasionally, it may request confirmation checks” to “ensure that the safest choice is made.” “Although we successfully passed more than 7,000 lights that went out last Saturday, the power outage caused an instant surge in such requests.” The company added, “This created a backlog of tasks and in some cases delayed response, which increased traffic pressure on already congested streets.” The company also said it suspended its services in San Francisco because city officials requested that streets be cleared to allow aid workers to pass through. Waymo added: “This ensures we don't further increase congestion or obstruct emergency vehicles during peak rescue periods.”