Waymo recalls over 3,800 robotaxis following close calls at freeway construction zones

Waymo, the self-driving vehicle unit of tech giant Alphabet, is recalling over 3,800 robotaxis in the U.S. after a software glitch caused more than a dozen of its vehicles to drive into freeway construction zones – the latest in a string of tech blunders. 

The firm filed the recall with the  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after the incidents starting in early April in California and ​Arizona. The autonomous vehicles didn’t recognize and drove past ramp ​closure signs into pre-planned freeway construction zones and freeway lanes with active ⁠construction work.

“Under certain circumstances, the AV may enter and drive at speed in freeway construction zones due to inappropriately prioritizing the avoidance of other freeway hazards and/or failing to recognize the construction zone,” the recall report stated without elaborating.

Waymo restricted its vehicles from freeway driving before it revamped its tech with better situational awareness, ​and to avoid entering construction zones.

“We identified an area of improvement regarding performance around freeway construction zones,” Waymo told The Post in a statement.

“We voluntarily restricted freeway operations last month while making improvements, proactively notified state and federal regulators, and decided to file a voluntary software recall with NHTSA.”

The recall is the second by Waymo in just over a month, and the self-driving giant has had other recent tech stumbles. The firm recalled nearly 4,000 robotaxis in May because vehicles could enter flooded roads with higher speed limits.

In April, one of its driverless vehicles rolled into a flooded lane in San Antonio during severe weather. The company said the vehicle was empty and nobody was hurt, but the mishap spurred an internal review of its autonomous system’s ability to handle abnormal driving conditions.

Other Waymo recalls are related to the vehicles’ ability to predict the movement of towed vehicles and its response to poles and other stationary roadside objects.

Waymo is also under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after one of its self-driving cars struck a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica, Calif., in January. The child suffered minor injuries.

Federal safety officials are also probing a separate January incident in which Waymo vehicles allegedly drove past a stopped school bus with its warning lights flashing, which sparked a separate recall in December.

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