Residents of neighborhoods in northwest Atlanta have expressed concerns about Waymo vehicles crowding their streets.
ABC News affiliate WSB-TV first reported the flooding of residential streets with self-driving cars. Residents said they’ve noticed empty Waymos around their neighborhood on Battleview Drive.
“There’s almost every little cul-de-sac in our area, so I think it’s a problem,” one resident told WSB-TV.
Andrea Brown Milheizler via Storyful – Photo: Video obtained by Storyful shows multiple Waymos driving down a street in an Atlanta neighborhood, around a dead end, and then down the street again.
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Another resident added, “I think yesterday morning we had 50 cars going by between 6 and 7 o’clock.”
Residents said they first saw Waymos about two months ago, but over the past few weeks, swarms of self-driving cars have been spotted circling in and around residential areas, WSB-TV reported.
Storyful – Photo: Video obtained by Storyful shows multiple Waymos driving down a street in an Atlanta neighborhood, around a cul-de-sac and then down the street again.
One resident tried to take matters into his own hands by putting up a Step2Kid sign (a neon character with a flag) to stop vehicles from entering the dead-end street, but that resulted in a traffic jam of Waymo vehicles trying to figure out how to turn around, WSB-TV reported.
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Now, some residents are raising safety concerns, saying the cars are too numerous and dangerous.
“We are a family with animals and pets, and the kids have to get on the bus in the morning, and the traffic just doesn’t feel safe,” one resident told WSB-TV.
Another resident told WSB-TV, “We’d like to see them stay on major traffic roads. If they’re not picking up people, I don’t see any reason for them to be in a small residential cul-de-sac.”
Residents told WSB-TV they have contacted Waymo but have not yet heard back from the company. They said they also contacted local and state officials.
Waymo said in a statement to ABC News that it is “committed to being a good neighbor” and that “we take community feedback seriously and have worked with our fleet partners to address this routing behavior.”
“With more than 500,000 weekly trips nationwide, our services are proven to significantly reduce traffic injuries and improve road safety,” Waymo added. “We value our relationship with Atlanta residents and remain committed to providing a seamless, respectful and safe experience for riders and residents.”
