Self-driving Uber involved in Tempe crash
Tempe police did not say whether the Uber vehicle was operating in autonomous mode or whether the driver was controlling the vehicle.
Self-driving Uber involved in Tempe crash Tempe police did not say whether the Uber vehicle was operating in autonomous mode or whether the driver was controlling the vehicle. Check out this story on azcentral.com: http://azc.cc/2vTQ83x
Ryan Randazzo, The Republic | azcentral.com Published 2:24 p.m. MT Sept. 8, 2017 | Updated 4:04 p.m. MT Sept. 8, 2017
In this Dec. 13, 2016, file photo, an Uber driverless car is displayed in a garage in San Francisco.(Photo: Eric Risberg/Associated Press)
A self-driving Uber vehicle was involved in a three-car crash in Tempe on Friday,though police said the Uber vehicle was not at fault.
Photos of the scene posted on Facebook Friday make it appear the Uber was rear-ended.
The crash happened at 1 p.m. near Apache and Terrace, southeast of the Arizona State University campus and near the light rail, according to Tempe police spokesman Ron Elcock.
"It is believed that the Uber was in self-driving mode at the time," he said, adding that the driver and back-seat passenger were not injured nor was the Uber driver cited.
Another driver, believed to be impaired, was arrested after fleeing the scene and being involved in a second accident nearby at University Drive and Price Road, he said. Police did not release that driver's name.
One victim in the first accident was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, he said.
Uber has been testing its self-driving Volvos on streets in the Phoenix area since December, following a dispute with California over licensing requirements. The vehicles operate mostly around ASU and along Scottsdale Road.
After an Uber vehicles was involved in a more serious crash in March at Don Carlos Avenue and McClintock Drive, Uber shut down its autonomous vehicle program in Tempe, San Francisco and Pittsburgh for a weekend.
Uber officials said they temporarily stopped the service to investigate the accident and determine if their equipment was operating properly. No one was seriously hurt.
In the March incident a woman driving a Honda, identified as Alexandra Cole, was cited for failing to yield the right of way to the Uber, according to Tempe police. The Uber vehicle driver, Patrick Murphy, was not cited.
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