this week showing activists in San Francisco placing traffic cones on the hoods of robo-taxis owned by companies like Waymo and Cruise, stopping the vehicles in their tracks. And those companies are not happy about it, with a spokesperson for Waymo going so far as to call it “vandalism.”
“All you need is a cone and an AV,” the TikTok explains, using the abbreviation for an autonomous vehicle. “Gently place the cone on the hood—you just created a temporary traffic calming!”, with a mix of comments from users, both for and against robo-taxis. But the companies that operate these vehicles are displeased with the social media exposure, to say the least.
“Not only is this understanding of how AVs operate incorrect, but this is vandalism and encourages unsafe and disrespectful behavior on our roadways. We will notify law enforcement of any unwanted or unsafe interference of our vehicles on public roadways,” Waymo spokesperson Katherine Barma told me over email.
I asked for clarification about whether traffic cones can actually stop Waymo vehicles when they’re placed on top of the hood, since Waymo seemed to be suggesting they couldn’t, but I have yet to hear back.
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