LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — A viral video of a Zoox robotaxi driving past a “Road Closed” sign in Las Vegas’ Arts District is raising new questions about how driverless vehicles respond to unexpected road conditions — and prompting at least one longtime rideshare driver to urge residents and tourists to put safety first.
Jim Ehlinger, a longtime Las Vegas rideshare driver and a United States Army veteran, said he is uneasy when his SUV crosses paths with Zoox robotaxis. While he has concerns about robotaxis affecting his income, he said his main worry is safety.
Asked what he thinks when he sees the vehicles on the street, Ehlinger said, “Avoid them.”
Video from last Friday shows a Zoox robotaxi traveling the wrong way down a closed road in the Arts District, rolling past a road-closed sign after initially hesitating. Ehlinger said he worries about what could have happened if there were people, wet pavement or a severely damaged road on the other side of the sign.
“In emergency situations, you need to react quickly,” Ehlinger said…