SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – No one wants a fender bender situation, particularly while driving in San Francisco. That situation is even less desirable when you're not even driving the car itself.
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Such is the struggle plaguing self-driving car company Cruise.
The company has been granted approval to offer driverless taxi service in San Francisco day and night, but it comes as the company is being investigated by the government.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has launched a federal probe into Cruise after several reports of the self-driving cars suddenly braking while out on the road, and getting rear-ended.
Another issue that has been reported is that the cars have sometimes just become immobilized and wind up blocking traffic.
But despite all of this the California Department of Motor Vehicles has gone ahead and granted the company permission to start charging for rides in San Francisco without restrictions.
San Francisco poses quite a challenge to even the most experienced drivers, and driverless cars.
"If it can drive here, I think it can drive in many other places," said Sonca Nguyen, a product manager for Cruise competitor Waymo.
"That's part of our strategy is to be able to demonstrate that we can have our technology work here," said Nguyen.
Waymo has also applied for permission to deploy driverless taxis in the city.
Cruise meanwhile needs final approval from the California Public Utilities Commission, but the federal probe could halt their plans to expand in the city.
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