Waymo pauses robotaxis in SF again due to flash flood warnings on Christmas Day

Waymo temporarily paused its robotaxi service in the San Francisco Bay Area on Thursday ahead of storms expected in the area, according to a customer notification on the company’s driverless ride-hailing app.

“Service has been temporarily suspended due to a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service,” the notice said.

Earlier this week, the Alphabet-owned company said it would update its fleet so its robotaxi service could perform better during power outages.

On December 20, Waymo paused service during a power outage in San Francisco that left tens of thousands of people in the area without power and caused some of its autonomous vehicles to stall in the middle of traffic, contributing to or causing traffic gridlock.

The National Weather Service has extended the flood watch for the entire San Francisco Bay Area until Friday at 10 p.m. local time.

Waymo did not immediately respond to a request for comment or say whether regulators expected service to be paused Thursday given flash flood warnings.

The California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates driverless ride-hailing services in the state, did not immediately respond to requests for information Thursday during the Christmas holiday.

Waymo currently operates a commercial, driverless service in five U.S. markets, up from three by the end of 2024. Waymo’s robotaxi service is operating in Austin, the San Francisco Bay Area, Phoenix, Atlanta and Los Angeles this year. The company plans to significantly expand its service footprint across the U.S. and beyond in 2026, CNBC previously reported.

Waymo faces increasing public scrutiny and safety concerns as it tries to expand its robotaxi service.