Driverless Waymo makes illegal U-turn in San Bruno. Who’s accountable?

Police officers in San Bruno didn’t have to look far for a traffic violation Friday night — a driverless Waymo pulled an illegal U-turn right in front of their patrol car.

For those officers, it was the first time they had stopped a driverless vehicle in the city, underscoring a dilemma as autonomous cars spread beyond San Francisco: when no one is behind the wheel, who is held responsible for breaking the law?

Around midnight near Huntington and San Bruno avenues, as officers were on the lookout for intoxicated drivers, the Waymo made the turn, police said. Unsure whether a human was inside — the vehicles have only recently begun appearing on city streets — officers flashed their lights and pulled the car over.

“Because autonomous vehicles are relatively new in San Bruno within the last few months, officers have seen these autonomous vehicles have actual drivers in them in the past,” Traffic Division Sgt. Scott Smithmatungol said. “So the officers conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle. The vehicle yielded to emergency lights on San Mateo Ave, just north of San Bruno Ave.”

Through the vehicle’s built-in communication system, officers reached Waymo representatives and reported the violation. With no driver present, however, no ticket was issued.

In San Mateo County, an illegal U-turn violation can carry fines of $200 to $300 or more, depending on the circumstances.

“Since there was no human driver, a ticket couldn’t be issued,” the department said in a Facebook post. “Hopefully, reprogramming will keep it from making any more illegal moves.”

After testing its robotaxi service in San Francisco in 2021, Waymo launched a full rollout in the city in June 2024. Months later, it expanded to the Peninsula.

It has since deployed cars in Brisbane, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Millbrae and Burlingame, with limited service in Mountain View, Palo Alto, Los Altos and parts of Sunnyvale. Waymo also has plans to expand to San Jose and San Francisco International Airport in the coming months.

Waymo did not respond to multiple questions about its safety protocols. In a statement, the company said: “We are looking into this situation and are committed to improving road safety through our ongoing learnings and experience.”

For now, police can only notify companies of violations.

That will change in July 2026, when Assembly Bill 1777 takes effect. The law, signed in 2024, requires driverless car companies to operate a 24/7 emergency hotline, install two-way voice communication in every vehicle and ensure remote operators can immobilize cars within 30 seconds.

It also authorizes officers to issue a “notice of autonomous vehicle noncompliance,” which companies must report to the Department of Motor Vehicles within 72 hours.

What the law does not spell out is how penalties for moving violations will be imposed.

It also introduces “emergency geofencing,” which allows officials to order entire fleets to avoid or leave certain areas within minutes. But it still stops short of letting officers issue direct fines or citations to the companies.

While moving violations are difficult to impose, San Francisco has regularly issued parking tickets to Waymo vehicles.

The DMV acknowledged an inquiry from this news organization about current protocols for citing autonomous vehicles but did not provide a response before press time. However, according to its website, at least 868 autonomous vehicle collisions had been reported statewide as of September, though the agency did not specify fault.

Waymo maintains insurance for crashes and has a system to report and investigate incidents.

In recent years, the vehicles have made headlines for high-profile mishaps: a tourist trapped in a circling Waymo in July, a stalled car that delayed then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ motorcade in San Francisco in September 2024, and a 2023 crash in which a Cruise vehicle dragged a pedestrian after a separate hit-and-run — an incident that contributed to Cruise suspending Bay Area operations.

Despite the incidents, Waymo insists its robotaxis are safer than human drivers.

The company says its vehicles have logged more than 96 million miles across Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin, San Francisco and other cities.

“Compared to human drivers, Waymo drivers had 92% fewer crashes with injuries to pedestrians, 82% fewer crashes with injuries to cyclists, and 82% fewer crashes with motorcyclists,” the company said.