A Tesla Robotaxi Kept Driving In Circles, Stumped By A Parking Lot

• A Tesla Robotaxi in Austin, Texas, kept driving in a loop in a busy parking lot, trying to find the exit.
• The whole thing was recorded by the backseat passenger, who was on his 16th Robotaxi ride.
• The safety monitor sitting in the front passenger seat didn’t do anything, so the client had to call for support.

As Tesla aims to expand its Robotaxi service to as many American cities as possible, one of its driverless cabs needed remote help to get out of a busy parking lot.

An autonomous Tesla Model Y that picked up a passenger in Austin, Texas, found it impossible to exit a busy parking lot, so it just kept driving in circles, trying to find a way out.

Dan Burkland, who describes himself as an EV enthusiast, was the passenger on that ride, and he recorded the whole trip.

The parking lot exit had been closed off with traffic cones, and the car recognized that. However, the EV didn’t find a way to the temporary exit, which was the same as the entrance. To get to the temporary exit, the car would have to drive on a piece of road that had markings showing that traffic was only allowed in the opposite direction.

A human driver would have been able to adapt to this situation, but the car didn’t. Neither did the safety monitor sitting in the front passenger seat, who did nothing to fix the problem, so the customer had to call support after the car went on its sixth loop.

“It looks like your vehicle seems to be failing to make progress,” the support agent said. Another lap later, a second support agent dials in and brings the car to a stop. About a minute later, the Model Y starts to move again, albeit extremely slowly, at roughly one to two miles per hour.

Burkland said that he suspected a teleoperator was controlling the vehicle from afar, judging from the delayed movements. After about five to six minutes, the car eventually resumes normal driving with updated navigation guidance. “I’m glad Tesla support has a process for this,” Burkland said.

Yesterday, Tesla expanded its Robotaxi service to the San Francisco Bay Area, where the cars have a safety driver behind the wheel. In Austin, Texas, the cars don’t have safety drivers, but safety monitors who sit in the front passenger seat.