Video: Google Self-Driving Car Hits a Bus Full of Passengers

Surveillance footage from a public bus in Mountain View documents a Google self-driving car swiping into the side of a bus, marking the first time that Google’s self-driving car was at fault in an accident. 

In the video, one can make out Google’s Lexus RX SUV momentarily hitting the ride side of the bus, which triggers a reaction from the bus driver, who stops the bus to check for damage, and the passengers. 

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Google had documented the accident in its monthly report on its self-driving cars. 

“[The self-driving car] began angling back toward the center of the lane at around 2 mph — and made contact with the side of a passing bus traveling at 15 mph,” the report states. “Our car had detected the approaching bus, but predicted that it would yield to us because we were ahead of it.” 

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The accident is a blow to the reputation of Google’s self-driving cars, which the company boasts is safer than cars driven by humans, and it has repeatedly touted the fact that since testing began, Google’s cars have driven more than 1 million miles on public roads without being responsible for an accident.