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Robotaxi company Waymo ends parking lot honking concerts

(dpa/fn) When Waymo's robotaxis took over a new parking spot in San Francisco, residents were tormented by honking concerts. A function that was supposed to be helpful had unexpected side effects.

A driverless robotaxi from Google's sister company Waymo is on the road. A software update now prevents future parking lot honking concerts. (Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa)
A driverless robotaxi from Google's sister company Waymo is on the road. A software update now prevents future parking lot honking concerts. (Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa)
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von Franziska Neuner

Waymo's robo-taxis have disturbed residents next to a parking lot in San Francisco with nightly horn concerts - now the Google sister company is remedying the situation with a software update.

New Function as Trigger

The trigger was a new function in which the self-driving cars honk when someone drives towards them backwards at a slow speed. This worked excellently in the city, but Waymo did not expect the situation to occur frequently in their own parking lot, a spokesperson told the technology blog "The Verge". The software update will restore peace and quiet.

Honking Concert in Livestream

A resident had set up a livestream of the parking lot rented by Waymo in recent days and accompanied the honking noises with musical sounds.

She reported that some cars returned to the parking lot from nighttime operations as early as 4:00 AM. Her videos show how the driverless robotaxis back up while turning in the parking lot and honk at the cars approaching them from behind.

Waymo not yet trouble-free on the road

Waymo offers rides with robotaxis without a human at the wheel in several US cities. In San Francisco, the service is already available without a waiting list. 

In recent years, city authorities and transport companies have sometimes complained that the vehicles occasionally blocked the streets. However, in general, the cars are on the road without problems. 

Translated automatically from German.
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