‘Poor Dude': L.A. Man Spots Someone ‘Trapped’ Inside a Waymo. Then He Shakes It to Try to Free Them
'There was a live person speaking through the car and they didn’t open it for me.'
A man recorded himself attempting to shake a Waymo passenger free from a parked vehicle. Steven Montes (@stevenstealberg) uploaded a viral TikTok that’s accrued more than 167,000 views on the popular social media platform. His clip has stoked further criticism of the rideshare service, and left passengers wondering if they could get trapped inside of a driverless taxi.
Montes begins his video with footage of him standing beside a white Jaguar I-Pace with Waymo branding. The vehicle has been outfitted with a variety of sensors typical of cars that have been added to the company’s fleet of autonomous rideshare vehicles.
Not long into the video, Montes begins pressing his weight against the car, shaking it vigorously from side to side.
A text overlay in the clip explains why he’s pushing the Google-owned self-driving taxi service:
“POV: you find someone trapped inside a clanker and spend 20 minutes trying to rescue them.” He briefly looks inside of the car before discovering an additional variable that further complicated the situation. “This [expletive]’s asleep,” Montes says.
Throughout the 11-second clip, what sounds like a computerized voice emanates from inside of the crossover SUV, along with a brief alarm noise.
He also said a live Waymo assistant had been reached, but that they wouldn't unlock the car, likely because the passenger was asleep and Montes was a stranger.
Can You Get Stuck In a Waymo?
Montes’ video appears to show a situation where a passenger decided to get some shut eye in the back of the autonomous taxi. And when they arrived at their destination, the Waymo service may’ve just prompted them to confirm the end of their ride before unlocking the vehicle. On one hand, some may view this situation as a potential positive. For instance, someone who had a bit too much to drink ends up getting a Waymo home. If they doze off in the backseat, they won’t have to worry about a stranger with ill-intentions cracking open the door of the vehicle, gaining access to the inebriated/sleepy passenger and/or their belongings.
However, there have been instances where riders who were fully awake couldn’t escape the cabin of a Waymo they hailed.
Other 'Trapped' Waymo Customers
The New York Post reported on a Waymo rider in Austin, Texas, who, like the person in Montes’ video, was also getting autonomously driven in a white I-Pace. Purportedly, the Waymo stopped on the MoPac expressway after it drove past its passengers’ destination. The riders complained that the Waymo wouldn’t let them out of the car, and while they were parked on the side of the road, other vehicles began honking at them.
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One of the Waymo users seated in the car said that its doors only opened up after she threatened to blast the service on social media. Although the New York Post reported that a Waymo rep said this wasn’t why the vehicle’s door eventually opened. A spokesperson for the company said the riders pressed a “pull over” button on the app and the Waymo vehicle stopped on a 30mph ride that had a sidewalk.
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Furthermore, the same Waymo rep added, “The riders could have safely exited at any time and at no point did our Rider Support team remotely unlock the door for them.” Also, according to the autonomous driving service, “passengers can pause their ride and exit the vehicle at any time.”
Stuck In a Waymo Loop
While that may be the case for the aforementioned passengers, this didn’t seem to be the case for an Arizona Waymo passenger. A man who was headed to the airport decided to hail one of the driverless vehicles. But upon arriving within the vicinity of his terminal, the car’s software elected to drive him around in circles through airport roads around 8 separate times. Becoming frustrated and worried he would miss his flight, the man phoned Waymo customer support. He was instructed by a support specialist to hit a button on his end that would end his Waymo ride. Ultimately, the vehicle ended up finding a spot on the side of the road, with a sidewalk, that he could safely leave from.
He said that the approximately 5-minute delay almost caused him to miss his flight. Another viral Waymo story sports a recording of driverless Waymo vehicles honking at each other. This Facebook user uploaded footage of a parking lot filled with cars utilized by the autonomous Google rideshare service. What transpires throughout the clip can best be described as a robo-traffic jam. Two of the cars attempt reversing while several other Waymo cars idle behind them, their hazard lights flashing. Other Waymo cars with their lights engaged sit motionless in the lot, with intermittent honks echoing throughout the concrete vehicle hub.
“The robotaxis in the Waymo lot are clustered and actually honking at each other! I would find it funny if it wasn’t 4 a.m.,” the Facebook user penned.
InsideEVs has reached out to Montes via TikTok comment for further information.
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