Cruise has unveiled its plan to redeploy a small fleet of robotaxis in Dallas this week. Following a significant setback last year, the company has now identified the city of Dallas in Texas as the next destination for gradually reintroducing its vehicles.
Return of Cruise Robotaxis to Dallas Roads
Cruise, a subsidiary of GM, has announced its plans to resume testing robotaxis in Dallas. TechCrunch reported that this decision comes as part of Cruise's ongoing efforts to validate the effectiveness of its self-driving systems and rebuild trust among the public.
After withdrawing its entire US fleet late last year due to an incident in San Francisco where a pedestrian was struck and dragged by a Cruise robotaxis, Dallas becomes the second city that Cruise is gradually reintroducing its vehicles into.
In Dallas, the fleet will consist of only three vehicles, and for now, they will not transport passengers or operate fully autonomously. Similar to their approach in Phoenix last April, human operators will manually drive the cars in Dallas to gather mapping and road data.
Cruise plans to progress to supervised driving, which will be evaluated against predetermined safety benchmarks, although a company spokesperson did not disclose those benchmarks.
The DMV's suspension focused on Cruise's failure to provide video evidence for an ongoing inquiry, leading to the agency's permit suspension. According to the DMV, discussions with Cruise officials took place on October 3, immediately following an incident wherein a pedestrian, initially struck by a human-driven vehicle, became trapped beneath a Cruise robotaxi.
The video segment that the DMV initially overlooked depicted the Cruise robotaxi engaging in a pull-over maneuver after coming to a halt while the pedestrian was underneath the vehicle.
According to the order, the autonomous vehicle traveled approximately 20 feet at a speed of seven miles per hour before a complete stop. The DMV asserted in the order that Cruise's failure to disclose this footage impedes the department's ability to promptly and thoroughly assess the safety of the company's vehicles, posing a risk to public safety.
California regulators are set to make a crucial decision regarding the expansion plans of two competing robotaxi services, Cruise and Waymo, in San Francisco. (Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Cautious, Deliberate Approach of Cruise
Cruise had recently initiated trials of its robotaxis in Dallas before the San Francisco incident, which prompted the company to halt all operations. Additionally, Cruise introduced a restricted robotaxi service in Austin and Houston, positioning itself as an early player in Texas' robotaxi sector.
Texas could emerge as a pivotal state for the widespread commercial adoption of autonomous vehicles. The state already serves as a center for testing autonomous trucks, facilitated by its favorable legislative environment and consistently clear weather conditions.
Waymo received approval earlier this year to commence commercial operations on the freeways of San Francisco and Los Angeles.
While Cruise has remained silent about its rollout strategy, the company is embracing a cautious and deliberate approach following criticisms of its previous rapid expansion strategy, which raised safety concerns.
