NHTSA’s ODI probing Waymo after robotaxi drove around stopped school bus

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Monday morning that its Office of Defects Investigation opened an investigation after seeing footage from early October of a Waymo autonomous vehicle maneuvering around a stopped school bus that was unloading children in Atlanta, Georgia. ODI says in a document that it will investigate the performance of Waymo’s self-driving software around stopped school buses, how the system is designed to comply with rules related to the buses, and more. NHTSA said Monday that, based on its engagement with Waymo so far, the “likelihood of other prior similar incidents is high.”