Uber autonomous cars banned in Arizona after fatal crash a week ago

Arizona ordered Uber Technologies Inc. to stop operating autonomous cars on the state’s roads indefinitely after the death of a pedestrian there a week ago.

In a letter to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, governor Doug Ducey called last week’s fatal incident involving an Uber selfdriving car “an unquestionable failure” to comply with public safety standards.

Uber had voluntarily halted testing company-wide after one of its vehicles hit and killed a woman in Tempe, Arizona. Ducey’s decision on Monday to designate a ban adds a significant hurdle to Uber’s attempts to get the programme back on track.

“Improving public safety has always been the emphasis of Arizona’s approach to autonomous vehicle testing, and my expectation is that public safety is also the top priority for all who operate this technology in the state,” Ducey wrote in the letter. “Arizona will not tolerate any less than an unequivocal commitment to public safety.”

Uber has previously tested autonomous vehicles in California and Pennsylvania, in addition to Arizona. The company hasn’t said when it will start operating them on public roads again. “We continue to help investigators in any way we can, and we’ll keep a dialogue open with the governor’s office going forward,” Matt Kallman, a spokesman for Uber, wrote in a statement.

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