San Francisco public transit operator challenges Cruise ride permit

Reuters- San Francisco's public transit operator has challenged Cruise's application to charge for robotaxi rides, saying on Wednesday promotional videos from the General Motors Co unit show Cruise passengers illegally hopping into and out of vehicles in the middle of the street instead of at the curb.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency SFMTA said in a 24-sided letter that Cruise's recent videos show the self-driving technology company is allowing unlawful behavior that can also endangers people nearby and slows down buses. The agency also blasted Cruise's application for failing to plan service in low-income and minority neighborhoods or to accommodate wheelchairs.

The cruise videos document 14 total stops for pick up or drop off of passengers, as well as provide evidence that not a single of these stops complied with the requirements of the Vehicle Code and Transportation Code, the agency wrote.

Cruise will respond to the concerns in a letter to the CPUC next Monday.

GM's Cruise, Alphabet Inc's Waymo and other companies view San Francisco as a good testing ground for robotaxi services. With the federal government slow to make rules on autonomous vehicles, states have stepped in to regulate. Local authorities in San Francisco and elsewhere have sought greater influence over the new technologies, including Tesla Inc's Autopilot.

The letter from the SFMTA was sent to the California Public Utilities Commission last month, which has final say on whether companies can charge for rides.

SFMTA has a letter that says it will deny Cruise's application unless it proves its automated systems can recognize lawful on-street parking, parallel park and pull into parking lots.

The agency criticized Cruise's initial deployment plan because it would ignore nearly all of the city's low income and disadvantaged communities and serve just 19% of San Francisco's Hispanic population and 24% of its Black population. The agency said that the company has yet to test wheelchair accessible trips.

In addition to that, Cruise said it would avoid streets with light rail lines, but it didn't acknowledge a long train route in its planned service area, SFMTA wrote.