San Francisco Officials Raise Concerns Over Waymo Vehicles Blocking First Responders

City leaders say police and firefighters are being forced to act as "roadside assistance" for stranded autonomous vehicles.

Mar. 3, 2026 at 5:08pm by Ben Kaplan

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During a hearing about Waymo's issues during a December power outage in San Francisco, city officials complained that police officers and firefighters have had to physically move or call tow trucks for stalled Waymo autonomous vehicles blocking intersections and traffic. The director of San Francisco's Department of Emergency Management, Mary Ellen Carroll, testified that this has become a major public safety concern, as first responders are being diverted from their primary duties to deal with the autonomous vehicles.

Why it matters

Waymo's self-driving cars have become a common sight in San Francisco, but the city's officials are growing frustrated that the vehicles are now requiring first responder assistance when they encounter issues like power outages. This is seen as an unacceptable burden on public safety resources that should be focused on responding to emergencies, not providing roadside assistance to autonomous cars.

The details

During the December power outage, Waymo's vehicles were sending an overwhelming number of requests to their remote assistance staff, causing the cars to stall in intersections. This led to police officers and firefighters having to physically move the vehicles, call tow trucks, or get Waymo to relocate them. City officials view this as a major public safety issue that is diverting first responders from their primary duties.

  • On December 20, 2025, police officers had to help move Waymo vehicles out of several intersections during the afternoon and evening hours.

The players

Waymo

An autonomous driving company and a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., Google's parent company.

Mary Ellen Carroll

The director of San Francisco's Department of Emergency Management.

Bilal Mahmood

A San Francisco supervisor who organized the hearing on Waymo's issues.

Alan Wong

A San Francisco supervisor who expressed frustration over first responders being used as "roadside assistance" for Waymo vehicles.

Ethan Teicher

A spokesperson for Waymo.

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What they’re saying

“What has started to happen is that our public safety officers and responders are having to be the ones to physically move [the cars]. In a sense, they're becoming a default roadside assistance for these vehicles, which we do not think is tenable.”

— Mary Ellen Carroll, Director of San Francisco's Department of Emergency Management

“Frankly, what I'm hearing mostly is that you kind of still expect our first responders to do roadside assistance, and you are just going to help us train them better to do that. I'm not really hearing a response about how you can take on some of that responsibility as well.”

— Bilal Mahmood, San Francisco Supervisor

“As Supervisor Mahmood has mentioned, our first responders should not be AAA roadside assistance.”

— Alan Wong, San Francisco Supervisor

What’s next

City officials plan to continue discussions with Waymo to find a solution that does not rely on police and firefighters to assist stranded autonomous vehicles.

The takeaway

This incident highlights the ongoing challenges of integrating autonomous vehicles into urban environments, as cities struggle to balance the needs of public safety with the growing presence of self-driving cars on their streets. San Francisco officials are pushing Waymo to take more responsibility for its vehicles and reduce the burden on first responders.