Self Driving Car Kills Pedestrian In Arizona

A pedestrian was struck and killed by a self-driving car owned by ridesharing company Uber in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe. The woman was walking outside of a crosswalk when she was hit by the vehicle. She was rushed to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead. 

Uber said the car was in autonomous mode and had a driver behind the wheel at the time of the accident. The company said it has suspended tests of self-driving cars throughout the United States and Canada and will cooperate with investigators. Uber is currently testing autonomous vehicles in Phoenix, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Toronto. 

Uber said in a tweet that their "hearts go out to the victim’s family."

Our hearts go out to the victim’s family. We’re fully cooperating with @TempePolice and local authorities as they investigate this incident.

The National Transportation Safety Board is sending a team to Arizona to help with the investigation. The accident appears to be the first time a self-driving car has been in a crash that resulted in the death of a pedestrian. 

In 2016, a man was killed after his Tesla S collided with a tractor-trailer while it was in self-driving mode. A report by the NTSB ultimately cleared Tesla's self-driving system and faulted the driver for ignoring warning signs and not paying attention to the road. 

Photo: Getty Images


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