Hyperdrive
Uber Death May Have Been Avoidable With Volvo's Technology
- Crash-avoidance technology was disabled during test drive
- NTSB investigation is active; Uber has implemented safeguards
This article is for subscribers only.
The Uber Technologies Inc. self-driving test vehicle that killed a pedestrian in Arizona earlier this year may have been able to avoid the crash had the ride-hailing company not disabled Volvo Cars’ safety system, according to a safety group.
In a report Tuesday, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety criticized Uber for turning off Volvo’s collision-avoidance technology in the XC90 sport utility vehicle that struck and killed a woman in Tempe on March 18. The insurer group’s chief research officer, David Zuby, vouched for the effectiveness of Volvo’s system, saying it would have prevented or mitigated the crash.