A week ago, a woman in the state was killed in Tempe by a Uber self-driving car.
Governor Doug Ducey released a letter he wrote to Uber, referring to an accident video posted on March 21 stating that the Arizona Department of Transportation will suspend Uber's ability to test and operate self-driving cars on Arizona's highways. .
'I found this video disturbing and worrying. It raised a lot of questions about Uber's ability to continue testing in Arizona,' wrote Ducey. 'As the governor, my top priority is public safety.'
'Improving public safety has always been the focus of Arizona's automated vehicle testing methodology. My expectation is that public safety is also the top priority for anyone in Arizona who uses this technology.' He continued.
Uber, which has suspended operations, said it will 'maintain dialogue' with Arizona.
The company stated in a statement that after the tragic events that occurred last week, we immediately stopped self-driving in all cities. We will continue to do our best to assist the investigators, and we will maintain dialogue with the Governor’s office. To solve any problems they are worried about.'
The police said that 49-year-old Elaine Hertzberger walked at a crossroads on the evening of March 18, she was knocked down by a self-driving car. She died in a local hospital because of an injury.
According to reports, this is the first death in the United States involving autonomous vehicles. Uber and law enforcement agencies are investigating the accident.
According to the National Conference of the Legislature, there are currently 22 states that have passed laws permitting the use of self-driving cars. The state legislature is responsible for tracking state laws. According to the NCSL, five other governors have issued executive orders, including Arizona. .
Ducey first signed an executive order in 2015 and then updated it a few weeks before the accident to further comply with federal law.
According to the Associated Press, Intel, Waymo and General Motors are also testing driverless cars in Arizona.