Remote Waymo Assistance, New York and Background Checks cover art

Remote Waymo Assistance, New York and Background Checks

Remote Waymo Assistance, New York and Background Checks

Listen for free

View show details

About this listen

 Waymo under fire for remote workers, New York kills robotaxis and Uber cranks up background checks. LegalRideshare breaks it down. WAYMO USES REMOTE ASSISTANCE WORKERS Waymo defends remote assistance on its cars. Reuters reported: Self-driving unit Waymo on Tuesday defended its use of remote assistance personnel in the face of questions from Congress and said they have never been used to move robotaxis in U.S. on-road operations. Waymo told Democratic Senator Ed Markey in a letter that it has not used remote driving or “tele-operations” to perform driving tasks. In rare circumstances, some U.S.-based personnel could prompt a stopped AV to move forward at 2 mph (3 kph) for a short distance to exit the travel lane but that has not happened outside of training. Markey and Republican Representative Buddy Carter have raised concerns about the use of remote personnel including some remote assistance personnel based in the Philippines. Waymo said its remote assistance personnel provide advice and support to Waymo robotaxis “but do not directly control, steer, or drive the vehicle.” Waymo operates four centers for remote assistance in Arizona, Michigan, and in two cities in the Philippines to support its fleet and at any given time, there are approximately 70 remote assistance agents, the company said. Only the Event Response Team, which manages responses to crashes or safety incidents and is based in the United States, could move a stopped vehicle. Markey said in a February 3 letter that Waymo had provided little public information about its policies around remote personnel, adding Congress and the public deserve assurance that the company's remote assistance operations will not endanger passengers, other road users, or national security. NEW YORK ROBOTAXI PLAN KILLED New York has pulled its robotaxi plan. Bloomberg reported: New York Governor Kathy Hochul has pulled a proposal that would have allowed for commercial robotaxi services outside New York City, a blow to Alphabet Inc.'s Waymo as it seeks to aggressively expand its driverless fleet this year. The proposal, which Hochul had included in her budget proposal last month, would have allowed autonomous-vehicle companies such as Waymo to apply for permission to pilot their services without human operators in the vehicle. The decision to withdraw the plan was confirmed Thursday by the governor's office to Bloomberg News. The move is a setback for Waymo, which is planning to hit more than 1 million paid weekly robotaxi rides in the US by the end of this year. The company has said it plans to expand across 20 cities in 2026 in the US and abroad, including in Dallas, San Antonio, Orlando, Nashville and London. Although Hochul's initial proposal excluded New York City, expanding in the rest of the state would have gotten Waymo a step closer to serving one of the biggest ride-hailing markets in the world. The New York Taxi Workers Alliance, which represents more than 20,000 rideshare and taxi drivers, celebrated the decision after earlier opposing the robotoxi plan on the grounds that it could replace some human workers. UBER ENACTS STRICTER BACKGROUND CHECKS Uber is enacting stricter background checks. The New York Times reported: Uber is taking steps to enact stricter background checks, after a New York Times investigation in December revealed that the ride-hailing giant's policies allowed for drivers with many types of criminal convictions, including violent felonies. The company had barred drivers convicted of murder, sexual assault, kidnapping and terrorism. But in 22 states, The Times found, the company had approved people convicted of most other crimes — including violent felonies, child abuse, assault and stalking — so long as the convictions were at least seven years old. Now, Uber is preparing to change those policies to bar people convicted of violent felonies, sexual offenses, and child or elder abuse and endangerment from driving for Uber, regardless of when those crimes occurred, according to people briefed on the matter. It is unclear when and how the changes will go into effect. The company also is considering changing its policies for other offenses, including harassment, restraining order violations and weapons charges, which are generally allowed if the convictions are more than seven years old. LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, robotaxis, Waymo, and gig worker accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
No reviews yet