American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla vehicles equipped with the autonomous driving system due to traffic-safety violations following multiple collisions.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration declared that the electric carmaker's self-driving assistance system, which requires motorists to stay alert and take control when necessary, had caused car behavior that violated road safety regulations”.
This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the initial phase before potentially seeking a recall of the cars if the authority determines they pose a risk to road safety.
The agency reported it had documented accounts of 2.88 million Tesla vehicles driving through red lights and moving in the incorrect direction during lane changes while operating the technology.
NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla car, operating with full self-driving activated, “approached an intersection with a red light, continued to travel into the intersection despite the red light and was later part of a crash with other cars in the junction”.
The authority reported that four accidents had resulted in one or more injuries.
The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one media report alleging that Tesla vehicles, driving through an intersection with FSD active, did not stay stationary for the entire time of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully, or did not properly recognize and show the proper traffic signal state in the car's display”.
Several reporters also claimed that FSD “did not provide alerts of the system's intended actions as the vehicle was coming to a red traffic signal”.
The full self-driving system, which is more sophisticated than its basic autopilot feature, has been under investigation by NHTSA for a year.
In October 2024, the authority began an inquiry into over two million Tesla cars equipped with FSD after four documented crashes in situations of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, mist or dust clouds. One such accident, in last year, was deadly.
Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for operation by a completely alert motorist, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is ready to take over at any time. While these capabilities are designed to improve over time, the presently active functions do not make the vehicle self-driving.”
Self-driving car systems continue to face increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies as the systems develop and practical implementation reveals possible issues with current implementations.
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