Self-Driving Tesla Abruptly Stops on San Francisco Bay Bridge Causing 8-Vehicle Crash, Injures 9 People

A highway surveillance footage showed a shocking crash after a self-driving Tesla suddenly stopped on a busy highway resulting in an 8-car pileup.

Tesla Model S Causes Crash on San Francisco's Bay Bridge

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, something horrifying happened on Bay Bridge. The footage obtained by The Intercept via a California Public Records Act request showed a Tesla Model S vehicle changing lanes and abruptly stopping in the far left lane.

The vehicles behind it were unprepared for its sudden stop, resulting in eight cars piling up, injuring nine individuals, including a 2-year-old child, and hour-long blocked traffic.

The driver of the car told police that he had been using Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" feature before the car's left signal and brakes were activated. It moves into the left lane and slows down before a complete stop.

The crash happened just hours before Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the full self-driving feature was available in North America. He also congratulated the Tesla Autopilot/AI team for its major milestone.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that it had investigated the accident.

Tesla's FDS Feature to Blame for the Crash?

Tesla vehicles have been using an "Autopilot" driver assistance system. Autopilot is part of the company's $12,000 Full Self-Driving (FDS) package. However, it's not really fully autonomous because the driver still needs to stay focused while the car auto-accelerates, decelerates, steers and attempts to stay in the center lane.

There are already 273 reported cases of Tesla vehicles using "Autopilot" from July 2021 to June 2022, according to NHTSA data. Seventy percent of 329 crashes involved Tesla's advanced driver assistance systems. The federal agency has investigated 35 crashes in which Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" or "Autopilot" systems were likely in use. Those accidents have resulted in a total of 19 fatalities.

Mashable added that there are a lot of complaints about Tesla vehicles in Autopilot mode on YouTube. Tesla owners have complained of sudden braking, known as phantom braking.

Phantom braking slows the car down while at highway speeds, and the Autopilot advanced driver assistance feature is engaged. Washington Post surveyed National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data and noticed an increase in the number of complaints from Tesla owners. In November 2021, there were 51 complaints, and the double-digit rate reportedly continued into the new year.

Due to the rising incidents involving Tesla's FSD beta program, which the company campaigns as a feature that allows drivers to take their hands off the wheel, it is currently under federal inspection.

A spokesperson for NHTSA said in an email obtained by Mashable that it is aware of the complaints and is reviewing them using its risk-based evaluation process. The whole process includes a discussion with the manufacturer and reviewing additional data sources, including the Early Warning Reporting data. If the agency finds out that there is a real threat, it will act immediately.

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