Waymo Stops Highway Robotaxi Services and Atlanta Operations Due to Safety Updates

Waymo announced it suspended robotaxi services on freeways across the US, as well as its entire Atlanta, Georgia, operation on May 21. The autonomous taxi service provider says it needs to update its vehicles to improve performance around "construction zones and flooded roadways," per Reuters.

Waymo has recently expanded into several new markets: Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando. The expansion brought the total number of cities the company operates in to 10, following earlier expansions into Miami and Austin. The brand operates two vehicles in cities like Atlanta: a Jaguar i-Pace EV or its new Ojai van, built by China's Geely.

"We ​have temporarily paused freeway operations, as we work to integrate recent technical learnings into our software and expect to resume ​these routes soon," a Waymo spokesperson told Reuters. Waymo taxis currently operate on freeways in four locations: San Francisco, Los ‌Angeles, ⁠Phoenix, and Miami. Waymo says it was evaluating and improving performance around some construction areas, but that street operations were unaffected. However, following flooding in Atlanta, Waymo paused service in the city when one of its unoccupied taxis stopped in floodwater on Wednesday, May 20.

Waymo previously recalled around 3,800 of its vehicles earlier in May. At the time, the company said the recall was because its vehicles could enter flooded roads with higher speed limits. The recall followed an incident on April 20, when a Waymo drove into a flooded lane in San Antonio, Texas. Again, the vehicle was unoccupied. At the time, the company said it was "working to implement additional software safeguards," and that it would put "mitigations in place" so that vehicles avoid floodwater.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on May 23, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

2026 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.

This story was originally published May 23, 2026 at 10:27 AM.