IIHS study finds Waymo driverless cars in 68% fewer crashes than people

An independent insurance-industry analysis found Waymo's driverless vehicles crashed far less often than human drivers across four cities.

An Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study found Waymo's driverless vehicles were involved in fewer crashes than human drivers on the same roads. Measured per vehicle mile traveled, the driverless cars had 68% fewer crashes than humans in the same areas and years, across deployments in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Austin.

The pattern held for specific crash types. Waymo's rate of rear-ending another vehicle was 91% lower than human drivers, and its rate of being rear-ended was 40% lower. The vehicles were unlikely to be the striking party or the primary contributor when crashes did occur. The analysis focused on crashes typically reported to police; of the automated-vehicle involvements, 22% were police-reportable or possibly so, and two-thirds of those happened during driverless operation.

For mobility as a shared, low-cost service, safety is the gating question. Independent confirmation from an insurance-focused body, rather than the operator itself, strengthens the case that driverless fleets can lower the crash rate that drives insurance costs, injuries, and public resistance. That lowers a real barrier to scaling autonomous transport to more people and places.

The study's own limits matter. Results apply only to the specific L4 vehicles in driverless operation, in particular cities and years, and only to police-reportable crashes. The authors also noted that the federal system for monitoring automated vehicles needs improvement, a reminder that oversight has not kept pace with deployment.

Source: HumanProgress