A fully autonomous Waymo robotaxi was caught on camera driving onto light rail tracks in south Phoenix this week, forcing its lone male passenger to exit the vehicle and sprint to safety before the vehicle continued along the rails toward an oncoming train.
The bizarre episode unfolded shortly after 9 a.m. local time near the intersection of Central and Southern avenues on Wednesday, when the Waymo car, operating without a human driver, turned off the roadway and onto the city’s light rail tracks. Viral video of the incident, first shared on social platforms like TikTok, shows the robotaxi stopped squarely on the rails with its hazard lights flashing as a train approached from behind.
In the footage, the passenger, apparently alarmed by the situation, exits the robotaxi and crosses the adjacent street to safety moments before the train arrives. Once clear, the robotaxi appears to continue along the tracks, eventually traveling about 30 meters and then engaging reverse gear as another train nears. No injuries were reported…