A massive power outage affected nearly 30% of San Francisco as the city plunged into darkness for hours, paralysing the city’s infrastructure and leaving hundreds of Google-owned Waymo self-driving vehicles stranded in the middle of busy roads. People on social media posted videos and photos of Waymo vehicles in the middle of the road, affecting smooth traffic.According to a report by SFGate, Waymo was forced to suspend its operations at approximately 8 p.m. (local time) after the vehicles became unable to safely navigate intersections without functioning traffic signals.“We have temporarily suspended our ride-hailing services given the broad power outage in San Francisco,” a Waymo spokesperson was quoted as saying. “We are focused on keeping our riders safe and ensuring emergency personnel have the clear access they need to do their work,” the spokesperson added.
Social media clips show chaos at roads due to Waymo cars
Multiple videos on social media showed at least four Waymo vehicles stopped in the centre of a major intersection with their hazard lights flashing, triggering significant traffic congestion. Reportedly, in one incident, a passenger was trapped inside a stationary vehicle during the blackout until he was manually rescued.
What caused power outage in San Francisco
The blackout affected over 130,000 homes and businesses in neighbourhoods including the Richmond, Sunset, Presidio and Golden Gate Park. Officials traced that a portion of Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) substation caught fire, knocking out critical grid components, leading to “significant transit disruptions.” Not only the autonomous cars, the city’s rail lines were shuttered and municipal buses were forced to bypass multiple stops in the affected zones.PG&E confirmed on Sunday that the grid has since been stabilised and no further outages are expected. Manual traffic control and city buses are returning to standard operations, the report said.
