This Robotaxi performs a surrealist maneuver: no sanction because of a legal vacuum

While Waymo is prosecuted by a cyclist who was brokethe story of the day has enough to make you smile. A Jaguar I-Pace Autonomous Blanche de Waymo was brutally immobilized in the middle of the road in Beverly Hills and blocked access to a Mercedes-Benz Class G.

A legal vacuum that prevents sanction

The annoyed driver came down from his vehicle and gave a tape on the back of the electric SUV clad with sensors. Except that his gesture had an unexpected effect: Robotaxi has restarted as if by magic and resumed its journey.

But the problem did not stop there since, a few meters further, the autonomous vehicle made a completely prohibited left turn and cut the road to another Mercedes.

A police officer from Los Angeles who was traveling in his Ford Explorer saw this offense and lit his beacons. Waymo Robotaxi has stored wisely by obeying light signals like any human driver.

The situation became unrealistic when the officer discovered that there was no driver in the passenger compartment. Faced with this legal absurdity, the policeman had no choice but to do nothing to reprimand this behavior.

According to several witnesses, the police officer contacted an operator of the company remotely to understand the situation and ensure the safety of other road users.

If the scene makes you smile, it points to a rather surprising Californian legal vacuum, while the state is very horse at this level, which complicates Tesla’s task in the launch of its autonomous vehicles in San Francisco.

The current law prohibits the police from issuing tickets to autonomous vehicles since there is no driver to verbalize. The Waymo robot therefore left without the slightest fine.

But technological impunity is coming to an end since, from July 2026, Californian legislation will evolve to allow autonomous vehicles to sanction. It will be the service operators who will receive the fines, which will allow you to supervise the sometimes unpredictable behavior of the Robotaxis.

The objective is to better regulate the proliferation of these autonomous vehicles in traffic in the United States.

There are more and more in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix or still Austin where Tesla launched her robotaxis. And unusual situations as this may occur more and more often with the massive deployment of Robotaxis.

If their release is not yet scheduled in France, we expect it for the next few years, and our legislation will therefore have to adapt.

Want to save even more? Discover Our promo codes Selected for you.