## Waymo Enhances Autonomous Fleet Response to San Francisco Power Outage
Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving technology division, is implementing fleet-wide software updates following a significant power outage in San Francisco that disrupted its driverless ride-hailing services. The incident, which left hundreds of thousands of residents without electricity, highlighted the challenges autonomous vehicles face when critical infrastructure fails.
The blackout, which began on a Saturday afternoon and affected approximately 130,000 Pacific Gas and Electric customers at its peak, caused widespread traffic gridlock due to the failure of traffic signals. Social media footage depicted numerous Waymo vehicles stationary on city streets.
In response to the disruption, Waymo directed its fleet to pull over safely and proceed to depots in stages. This measure, detailed in a company blog post, was intended to prevent further exacerbating congestion and to ensure clear passage for emergency responders during the critical recovery period.
“We’ve always focused on developing the Waymo Driver for the world as it is, including when infrastructure fails,” the company stated, underscoring its commitment to robust autonomous operation. The outage, attributed by PG&E to extensive damage at a substation, left tens of thousands without power into Sunday morning.
Waymo is now proactively addressing the learnings from this event through three key initiatives. Firstly, fleet-wide updates will equip vehicles with enhanced awareness of regional power outages, enabling more decisive navigation and decision-making at intersections. Secondly, the company is refining its emergency response protocols. This includes increased collaboration with city officials, such as Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office in San Francisco, to improve coordination during emergency preparedness efforts. Finally, Waymo is updating its first responder training programs to incorporate insights gained from this and similar large-scale events.
This focus on resilience is crucial as Waymo continues to expand its operational footprint. Beyond San Francisco, the company offers paid autonomous rides in Austin, Phoenix, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. Waymo recently reported surpassing an estimated 450,000 weekly paid rides and anticipates completing over 20 million trips in 2025, a testament to its growing adoption since its 2020 launch.
With over 100 million miles of fully autonomous driving experience and a demonstrated commitment to improving road safety, Waymo views such challenges as opportunities to innovate and reinforce the reliability of its autonomous systems. The company remains dedicated to serving residents and visitors in San Francisco and its other operating cities, continually striving to advance the future of transportation.
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