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Incident 1547: Waymo Robotaxis Reportedly Entered Closed Freeway Construction Zones in Arizona and California

Description: Between April 11 and May 18, 2026, 13 Waymo robotaxis reportedly entered closed or active freeway construction zones in Phoenix and the San Francisco Bay Area after failing to recognize construction-zone closure controls. The vehicles allegedly continued into work areas at freeway speeds, creating collision risks for construction workers and other road users. Waymo reportedly restricted freeway operations and later recalled 3,871 affected automated driving systems.
Editor Notes: Timeline notes: This record groups 13 related construction-zone events documented in Waymo's 06/17/2026 NHTSA recall filing. The incident date reflects the earliest event, on 04/11/2026; the AIID record was created on 06/19/2026. See also: (1) https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2026/RCLRPT-26E035-7637.pdf and (2) https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2026/RCAK-26E035-6843.pdf.

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Alleged: Waymo and Automated driving system developers developed an AI system deployed by Waymo , Automated driving system deployers and Robotaxi operators, which harmed Construction workers , Road users and Waymo passengers.
Alleged implicated AI systems: Waymo Driver , 5th-generation Waymo Driver and Automated driving systems

Incident Stats

Incident ID
1547
Report Count
7
Incident Date
2026-04-11
Editors
Daniel Atherton

Incident Reports

Reports Timeline

Incident OccurrenceWaymo pauses freeway rides to improve response in construction zones+5
Waymo recalls nearly 3,900 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones
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Waymo pauses freeway rides to improve response in construction zones

Waymo pauses freeway rides to improve response in construction zones

abc7news.com

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Waymo recalls nearly 3,900 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones

Waymo recalls nearly 3,900 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones

reuters.com

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Waymo recalls about 3,900 robotaxis after some drove into ‘freeway construction zones’

Waymo recalls about 3,900 robotaxis after some drove into ‘freeway construction zones’

cnbc.com

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Waymo Recalling More Than 3,800 Robotaxis Over Risk of Entering Construction Zones

Waymo Recalling More Than 3,800 Robotaxis Over Risk of Entering Construction Zones

wsj.com

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Waymo recalls nearly 4,000 robotaxis to stop them driving into highway construction zones

Waymo recalls nearly 4,000 robotaxis to stop them driving into highway construction zones

techcrunch.com

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Waymos Recalled Over Risk They’ll Drive at Speed Into Freeway Construction Zones

Waymos Recalled Over Risk They’ll Drive at Speed Into Freeway Construction Zones

wired.com

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Waymo restricts freeway rides after robotaxis enter Bay Area construction zones

Waymo restricts freeway rides after robotaxis enter Bay Area construction zones

sfchronicle.com

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Waymo pauses freeway rides to improve response in construction zones
abc7news.com · 2026

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Waymo has paused freeway rides for its robotaxi service in San Francisco and other cities as it works to improve how its vehicles respond in construction zones.

The company said riders can still use its service for tr…

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Waymo recalls nearly 3,900 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones
reuters.com · 2026

WASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab self-driving unit Waymo is recalling nearly 3,900 robotaxis in the U.S. because a software issue could cause the ​vehicles to enter a closed freeway construction zone and con…

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Waymo recalls about 3,900 robotaxis after some drove into ‘freeway construction zones’
cnbc.com · 2026

Waymo is recalling almost 3,900 robotaxis in the U.S. to fix software issues after some cars drove into freeway construction zones, according to notices filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The voluntary recall, th…

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Waymo Recalling More Than 3,800 Robotaxis Over Risk of Entering Construction Zones
wsj.com · 2026

Waymo is recalling thousands of robotaxis over the risk the vehicles could speed through highway construction zones.

The self-driving car company, a Google sibling within Alphabet, is recalling certain fifth-generation automated driving sys…

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Waymo recalls nearly 4,000 robotaxis to stop them driving into highway construction zones
techcrunch.com · 2026

Waymo has recalled its fleet of nearly 4,000 robotaxis to restrict them from driving on highways while it figures out how to make the vehicles behave around construction zones.

The recall comes after Waymo identified at least 13 instances o…

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Waymos Recalled Over Risk They’ll Drive at Speed Into Freeway Construction Zones
wired.com · 2026

Waymo has filed its fourth safety recall since February 2024, after its driverless cars were caught entering closed freeway-construction zones.

The recall, filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on June 17, ap…

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Waymo restricts freeway rides after robotaxis enter Bay Area construction zones
sfchronicle.com · 2026

Waymo has restricted freeway rides while it works on a software fix for nearly 3,900 robotaxis after some of its driverless vehicles entered freeway construction zones in Phoenix and the Bay Area, according to federal safety records.

The vo…

Variants

A "variant" is an AI incident similar to a known case—it has the same causes, harms, and AI system. Instead of listing it separately, we group it under the first reported incident. Unlike other incidents, variants do not need to have been reported outside the AIID. Learn more from the research paper.
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