Federal safety regulators have launched a formal investigation into Waymo following reports that its autonomous robotaxis continued to illegally pass stopped school buses even after the company implemented a software recall to address the issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated a ‘recall query’ to determine why the vehicles failed to comply with traffic laws despite a corrective update deployed in late 2025.

Initial concerns were raised in October 2025 after video evidence surfaced showing a Waymo vehicle maneuvering around a school bus in Atlanta that had its stop sign extended and lights flashing while children were disembarking. Subsequent reports from the Austin Independent School District documented at least five additional instances where Waymo vehicles bypassed stopped buses in the area. The NHTSA filing indicates that a significant portion of these documented safety failures occurred after the company claimed to have patched the software.

Waymo has defended its safety record, noting that it has not received any citations for such behavior since March 2026. The company maintains that its autonomous driving system is designed to learn and improve over time, and it has pledged to cooperate fully with the NHTSA’s inquiry into the effectiveness of its previous recall remedy. As the investigation proceeds, regulators are focused on assessing whether the company’s software updates are sufficient to ensure compliance with critical school bus safety protocols.

Key Takeaways

• The NHTSA has opened a recall query to investigate why Waymo vehicles continued to pass stopped school buses after a software fix was supposedly implemented.
• Multiple incidents were reported in Atlanta and Austin, involving autonomous vehicles navigating around buses with active stop signs and flashing lights.
• Waymo claims it has seen no further citations since March 2026 and is cooperating with federal regulators to address the investigation.

Editor’s Analysis & Impact

The investigation into Waymo highlights a critical challenge for the autonomous vehicle industry: the gap between software-based ‘remedies’ and real-world performance. While software updates are the standard mechanism for fixing defects in modern vehicles, the persistence of this specific safety issue suggests that edge-case scenarios—such as navigating around school buses—remain difficult for AI models to generalize correctly. This probe could set a precedent for how regulators oversee ‘over-the-air’ updates, potentially leading to more stringent validation requirements before a recall is considered closed. For the broader industry, this underscores that public trust is fragile; even if autonomous vehicles are statistically safer than human drivers, high-profile failures involving children or school zones invite intense regulatory scrutiny that could slow the pace of commercial deployment in new urban markets.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is the NHTSA investigating Waymo again?
A: The NHTSA is investigating why Waymo's robotaxis continued to illegally pass stopped school buses even after the company issued a software update intended to fix the problem.

Q: What is a 'recall query' in this context?
A: A recall query is an investigation opened by the NHTSA to assess whether a company's previous remedy for a safety defect was adequate and effective in preventing the issue from recurring.