Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis over flooded-road risk

Waymo is recalling about 3,800 robotaxis in the United States after finding a risk that some waymo vehicles could enter flooded roads with higher speed limits. The move follows an April 20 incident in San Antonio during extreme weather. No one was inside the vehicle, and there were no injuries.

Waymo and San Antonio flooding

The company said the recall comes after a vehicle drove into a flooded lane in San Antonio on April 20. Waymo said it is working to implement additional software safeguards and has put mitigations in place, including refining its extreme weather operations during periods of intense rain, limiting access to areas where flash flooding might occur.

NHTSA scope and maps

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Waymo has temporarily narrowed its operating scope to increase weather-related restrictions. The agency also said Waymo has updated its maps while it works on a permanent remedy. That points to a fix that is already partly operational, but not yet finished.

Waymo under scrutiny

The recall lands while Waymo is already facing an NHTSA investigation after one of its self-driving vehicles struck a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica, California, in January. The child suffered minor injuries. In March, the National Transportation Safety Board said it was investigating a January incident in which Waymo self-driving vehicles passed a stopped school bus with its lights activated in violation of Texas state law.

For riders, the immediate change is not a shutdown. It is a narrower operating scope around weather and flood risk while Waymo works on software changes that it says should keep vehicles away from dangerous water-covered roads. The unresolved question is how quickly the permanent remedy reaches the full fleet of about 3,800 robotaxis.