Uber Safety Driver Streamed Hulu During Fatal Self-Driving Crash
A newly released police report shows the Uber safety driver involved in a fatal Arizona crash watches a streaming video on her phone for nearly a third of the test drive. Authorities state the driver could have avoided the collision if she kept her eyes on the road.
A lengthy police report reveals that the Uber safety driver involved in a fatal pedestrian crash in Tempe, Arizona, streams video on her phone for nearly a third of the 43-minute test drive. Rafaela Vasquez looks down at her phone 204 times to watch The Voice on Hulu, keeping her eyes off the road for 3.67 miles of the 11.8-mile trip. Police determine that Vasquez could have avoided striking and killing 49-year-old Elaine Herzberg if she simply looks at the road instead of her screen.
The case undergoes review by the Maricopa County Attorney’s office as Vasquez potentially faces vehicular manslaughter charges. Uber states it maintains a strict policy prohibiting mobile device usage for anyone operating its self-driving vehicles and continues to cooperate with the ongoing investigation. Following the tragedy, the company hires former National Transportation Safety Board chair Christopher Hart to advise on its overall safety culture and reviews its internal driver training practices.
While the driver's distraction plays a major role, the report also highlights significant flaws in Uber’s self-driving technology. The vehicle's LiDAR and radar spot the pedestrian six seconds before impact, but the system misidentifies Herzberg as an unknown object, then a vehicle, and finally a bicycle. Furthermore, Uber intentionally disables the Volvo's factory emergency braking system while the car is under computer control to prevent erratic vehicle behavior, leaving the safety driver as the only failsafe.