Waymo Recalls, Updates Software for 3,000 Vehicles

Alphabet unit Waymo recalled 3,067 of its vehicles in the United States over a software issue which was fixed through an update, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Thursday.

The company had recalled certain vehicles with the 5th generation automated driving systems (ADS) operating with software that caused vehicles to drive past stopped school buses, increasing the risk of a crash, the regulator said.

Waymo updated the software and all impacted vehicles were repaired by November 17, the NHTSA said.

Waymo said last week that it would issue a recall for its self-driving vehicles after Texas officials said the vehicles illegally passed school buses at least 19 times since the start of the school year.

Waymo said at the time that a software issue contributed to self-driving vehicles initially slowing or stopping for a school bus and then proceeding and added that the company will continue to track and implement more updates as needed.

The NHTSA, which opened a probe into Waymo vehicles in October, has asked the self-driving car company to answer questions about the Texas incidents by January 20.

(Reporting by Khanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)