NHTSA orders autonomous vehicle makers to stop blocking first responders
NHTSA gave AV makers until the end of July to fix vehicles that block first responders, a warning aimed squarely at robotaxi operators.
NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison on July 8 ordered autonomous vehicle developers to confront a problem that has moved from nuisance to federal scrutiny: robotaxis and other AVs interfering with first responders and law enforcement. Companies must present solutions by the end of July, and Morrison called the behavior a “functional insufficiency,” not a rare oddity.
Waymo operates the largest robotaxi fleet in the country in markets including Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco, and has drawn repeated attention for emergency-scene interference. In at least six incidents identified through March 2026, first responders had to take control of Waymo vehicles and move them out of traffic during emergencies.
In San Francisco, supervisor Bilal Mahmood said he plans to submit a letter of inquiry after the July 4 fireworks show near the Golden Gate Bridge left the city in gridlock and disrupted Muni service. Dozens of Waymo vehicles were stranded in the Presidio, some needed towing after running out of power, and one drove over a lit firework while carrying passengers.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles adopted new autonomous vehicle regulations on April 28, 2026, expanding safety and enforcement powers, allowing local emergency officials to create temporary restricted zones during emergencies, and requiring AV companies to respond to first responder calls within 30 seconds. The rules also let law enforcement cite companies for moving violations committed by their vehicles. They require 50,000 miles of light-duty testing or 500,000 miles of heavy-duty testing at each stage before a company can advance from testing with a safety driver to driverless testing and then deployment.
As of May 8, the DMV had issued testing permits with a driver to multiple manufacturers, and Waymo had driverless testing authorization in approved California locations including Foster City and San Francisco. Deployment authorization was already in place for some entities as of November 21, 2025.
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