LOS ANGELES (CNS) — Los Angeles City Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez will introduce a motion Wednesday calling on the city attorney to join an existing lawsuit against a state commission “urging officials in the state to address public safety concerns around autonomous vehicles (AVs) and rein in the expansion of robotaxis in Los Angeles.”
The councilman specifically cited both Waymo and Cruise, companies developing and launching AVs, in his statement.
“The City of Los Angeles should not be a test subject for the tech industry. Robotaxi safety incidents, including crashes and congestion, are becoming the norm,” Soto-Martinez said during a news conference at City Hall.
“Some of the stories that I’ve heard are absolutely egregious and should not be happening here in the city. These vehicles have stopped at intersections at peak hours, whether due to crashes or shutting down to the lack of connectivity,” he added.
The councilman also shared his concerns over how the AVs could be taken over in a potential cyberattack.
Chris Griswold of the Teamsters union, which represents drivers and other workers, joined Soto-Martinez at Wednesday morning’s news conference.
Soto-Martinez emphasized that if the AVs were to become safer, he would still not support that technology because it could eliminate good-paying jobs.
Soto-Martinez is calling on Los Angeles to join an ongoing city of San Francisco lawsuit against the California Public Utilities Commission to redo an August hearing that expanded robotaxi permits for Cruise and Waymo. The CPUC is one of the regulatory bodies overseeing the rollout of AVs in California.
On Tuesday, the California Department of Motor Vehicles announced it was rescinding Cruise’s robotaxi permits. The DMV noted in its suspension order that Cruise withheld video footage of its robotaxi hitting a pedestrian in San Francisco on Oct. 2., impeding the agency’s ongoing investigation of the incident.