This week, a Waymo robotaxi was responsible for a traffic jam at a Chick-fil-A in Santa Monica, California, after it became stuck in the restaurant’s drive-thru lane. Waymo confirmed this incident, initially reported by the local broadcast station KTLA 5, in an email to TechCrunch.
According to Waymo, the robotaxi was unoccupied at the time of the incident, having just dropped off a passenger in the Chick-fil-A parking lot. The vehicle was unable to complete a multi-point turn due to the tight space caused by the drive-thru lane’s proximity and several other vehicles.
Fortunately, there were no injuries resulting from this incident, only delays for those waiting to place their food orders.
Incidents like these have occurred periodically, often gaining attention through social media videos, where Waymo robotaxis have impeded traffic or caused disruptions. Over the past year, one of their vehicles became stuck in a roundabout loop, another halted in front of former Vice President Kamala Harris’ motorcade in San Francisco, and a parking lot full of Waymo vehicles honked for nearly an hour during the early hours of the morning.
Waymo provides commercial robotaxi services in San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles and operates a similar service in Austin through a partnership with Uber.
