Regulators are investigating Waymo after its robotaxi drove around a stopped school bus

A Waymo robotaxi was recently spotted driving around a school bus that had its red lights flashing, and federal safety regulators have launched an investigation as a result.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) was announced Monday morning the Office of Accident Investigation (ODI) opened an investigation after seeing footage from early October of a Waymo self-driving vehicle maneuvering around a stopped school bus unloading children in Atlanta, Georgia.

ODI says in a document that will explore how Waymo’s self-driving software performs around stopped school buses, how the system is designed to comply with bus-related rules, and more. NHTSA said Monday that, based on its engagement with Waymo so far, “the likelihood of other prior similar incidents is high.”

The Waymo robotaxi in question was crossing perpendicularly in front of the school bus on its right side. The autonomous vehicle then turned left around the front of the bus before traveling down the road. According to Waymo, the bus was partially blocking the road from which the robotaxi was leaving. The company claims that the robotaxi could not see the flashing lights or stop sign. Waymo did not immediately respond to a question about whether the vehicle could see the students getting off the bus or the bus control arm.

“Safety is our top priority as we provide hundreds of thousands of fully autonomous paid trips each week in some of the most challenging driving environments in the US,” the company said in a statement, citing data showing its vehicles entering fewer accidents than those driven by humans. “NHTSA plays a vital role in road safety, and we will continue to work with the agency as part of our mission to be the world’s most trusted driver.”

Waymo also said Monday that it has already issued software updates to its fleet to improve performance.

This has been an expansion year for Waymo. The company started in Atlanta, brought its robotaxis to Austin, expanded throughout Silicon Valley and is testing in a number of other metro areas, including New York. It’s also testing at San Jose and San Francisco airports, and has several more cities lined up for 2026.

Part of the process of launching in new cities is meeting the self-driving system and learning from new scenarios — though it’s safe to say Atlanta wasn’t the first place Waymo’s robotaxi had seen school buses.

This isn’t the first time the NHTSA has opened an investigation into Waymo’s self-driving cars. In 2023, NHTSA investigated reports that Waymo’s vehicles encountered road obstacles such as gates and chains in low-speed situations. That investigation eventually led to a recall in May, which Waymo addressed with a software update. Last year, the agency announced an investigation focused on reports that Waymo vehicles drove into the wrong lane or entered construction zones.