Waymo vehicle hits child near Santa Monica elementary school

A Waymo self-driving taxi struck a child near a Santa Monica elementary school during drop-off hours, triggering an investigation into the incident by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The child sustained minor injuries, Waymo said. There were other children, a crossing guard and several double-parked vehicles in the vicinity when the accident occurred last Friday, according to NHTSA.

The investigation said the child was running across the street towards the school when they were hit. A Waymo statement said the child appeared from behind a large SUV.

“The event occurred when the pedestrian suddenly entered the roadway from behind a tall SUV, moving directly into our vehicle’s path,” Waymo said. “The Waymo Driver braked hard, reducing speed from approximately 17 mph to under 6 mph before contact was made.”

Waymo reported the incident to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and said it would fully cooperate. The Waymo involved was operating on the company’s 5th generation automated driving system without a safety driver.

After being struck, the pedestrian stood up and walked to the sidewalk, where witnesses called 911, Waymo said. The company said the incident demonstrated the safety benefits of Waymo.

“Our peer-reviewed model shows that a fully attentive human driver in this same situation would have made contact with the pedestrian at approximately 14 mph,” the statement said. “This significant reduction in impact speed and severity is a demonstration of the material safety benefit of the Waymo Driver.”