Swordsmyth
01-01-2019, 09:07 PM
More than 20 driverless vehicles in Arizona have reportedly been vandalized over the last two years, according to the New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/31/us/waymo-self-driving-cars-arizona-attacks.html), as enraged locals in the Waymo test market of Chandler have begun to revolt.
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Waymo-self-driving-mininvan-test-668x409.jpg
Tensions began to flare last year after an Arizona pedestrian was killed by a self-drivng Uber ca (https://thehill.com/policy/technology/379119-woman-dies-after-being-hit-by-self-driving-uber)r, with residents slashing tires, throwing rocks at, pulling guns on, and trying to wreck the autonomous cars.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXot2tUxPYI
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Some people have pelted Waymo vans with rocks, according to police reports. Others have repeatedly tried to run the vehicles off the road. One woman screamed at one of the vans, telling it to get out of her suburban neighborhood. A man pulled up alongside a Waymo vehicle and threatened the employee riding inside with a piece of PVC pipe.
In one of the more harrowing episodes, a man waved a .22-caliber revolver at a Waymo vehicle and the emergency backup driver at the wheel. He told the police that he “despises” driverless cars, referring to the killing of a female pedestrian in March in nearby Tempe by a self-driving Uber car. -NYT (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/31/us/waymo-self-driving-cars-arizona-attacks.html)
“There are other places they can test,” said 37-year-old Erik O’Polka, who was issued a warning in november after multiple reports that his Jeep Wrangler had tried to run Waymo vans off the road. In one instance, O'Pokla reportedly drove head-on toward one of the self-driving vehicles, forcing it to abruptly stop.
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/waymo1.jpg
O'Polka's wife Elizabeth, 35, admitted in an interfview that Erik "finds it entertaining to brake hard" in front of the driverless vehicles, and that she herself "may have forced them to pull over" for a good yelling-at. The couple says their hatred of self-driving cars began when their 10-year-old son was almost hit by a self-driving vehicle while playing in a nearby cul-de-sac.
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/waymo%20crash.jpg
"They said they need real-world examples, but I don’t want to be their real-world mistake," said Polka. "They didn’t ask us if we wanted to be part of their beta test," added his wife.
Some of the attacks have been difficult for law enforcement to pursue, as Waymo emergency drivers told the Chandler police that the company prefers not to pursue the prosecution of the assailants. In several cases, the police say Waymo was unwilling to provide video of the attacks - and were told that they would need a warrant in at least one case.
More at: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-01-01/tires-slashed-guns-pulled-self-driving-cars-arizona-residents-revolt
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Waymo-self-driving-mininvan-test-668x409.jpg
Tensions began to flare last year after an Arizona pedestrian was killed by a self-drivng Uber ca (https://thehill.com/policy/technology/379119-woman-dies-after-being-hit-by-self-driving-uber)r, with residents slashing tires, throwing rocks at, pulling guns on, and trying to wreck the autonomous cars.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXot2tUxPYI
.
Some people have pelted Waymo vans with rocks, according to police reports. Others have repeatedly tried to run the vehicles off the road. One woman screamed at one of the vans, telling it to get out of her suburban neighborhood. A man pulled up alongside a Waymo vehicle and threatened the employee riding inside with a piece of PVC pipe.
In one of the more harrowing episodes, a man waved a .22-caliber revolver at a Waymo vehicle and the emergency backup driver at the wheel. He told the police that he “despises” driverless cars, referring to the killing of a female pedestrian in March in nearby Tempe by a self-driving Uber car. -NYT (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/31/us/waymo-self-driving-cars-arizona-attacks.html)
“There are other places they can test,” said 37-year-old Erik O’Polka, who was issued a warning in november after multiple reports that his Jeep Wrangler had tried to run Waymo vans off the road. In one instance, O'Pokla reportedly drove head-on toward one of the self-driving vehicles, forcing it to abruptly stop.
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/waymo1.jpg
O'Polka's wife Elizabeth, 35, admitted in an interfview that Erik "finds it entertaining to brake hard" in front of the driverless vehicles, and that she herself "may have forced them to pull over" for a good yelling-at. The couple says their hatred of self-driving cars began when their 10-year-old son was almost hit by a self-driving vehicle while playing in a nearby cul-de-sac.
https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/waymo%20crash.jpg
"They said they need real-world examples, but I don’t want to be their real-world mistake," said Polka. "They didn’t ask us if we wanted to be part of their beta test," added his wife.
Some of the attacks have been difficult for law enforcement to pursue, as Waymo emergency drivers told the Chandler police that the company prefers not to pursue the prosecution of the assailants. In several cases, the police say Waymo was unwilling to provide video of the attacks - and were told that they would need a warrant in at least one case.
More at: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-01-01/tires-slashed-guns-pulled-self-driving-cars-arizona-residents-revolt