A self-driving car from Waymo, a sister company of Google, has fallen victim to vandals in San Francisco.
Sunday, February 11, 2024 at 10:46 AM
Video footage on social media shows how several people first smash the windows of the vehicle and then explode fireworks in the robot taxi, after which it burns out completely. The incident happened in Chinatown, where many people were out celebrating Chinese New Year. The taxi had no passengers on board, and no one was injured.
Self-driving cars are increasingly under fire in San Francisco. The fire brigade complains, among other things, that they often block traffic. In addition, Uber drivers are afraid that they will lose their jobs.
Since the summer, vehicles from Waymo and rival Cruise have been allowed to provide 24-hour taxi services in San Francisco. But Cruise’s cars have been idle since October, after a pedestrian was dragged several meters by a robot taxi. Proponents believe that self-driving cars are still safer than vehicles driven by humans.
