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Waymo Recalls 3,791 Vehicles After San Antonio Flooded Road Incident
The voluntary recall, filed April 30, 2026, addresses software that may allow vehicles on fifth and sixth generation Automated Driving Systems to enter standing water on higher speed roadways. A self-driving Waymo car was swept away in a flooded creek on April 20 with no passengers aboard and no injuries reported.
May 13, 11:44 AM·2m read2 sources
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Waymo issued a voluntary recall of 3,791 autonomous taxis after one of its self-driving vehicles drove into a flooded creek in San Antonio on April 20, 2026, and was swept away. The recall was filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on April 30.
No passengers were aboard the vehicle and no injuries were reported from that incident or similar events in Austin, Texas, where Waymo vehicles drove onto a flooded street and came to a halt.
The software may allow the vehicle to slow and then drive into standing water on higher speed roadways. Entering a flooded roadway can cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash or injury, according to NHTSA. A Waymo vehicle entered a flooded and impassable road in San Antonio during severe weather, prompting the action.
The recall affects Waymo vehicles operating on the company’s fifth and sixth generation Automated Driving System. Waymo identified an area of improvement regarding untraversable flooded lanes specific to higher-speed roadways, a company spokesperson said.
"We are working to implement additional software safeguards and have put mitigations in place, including refining our extreme weather operations during periods of intense rain, limiting access to areas where flash flooding might occur," the spokesperson added.
In response, Waymo narrowed its operating scope to bolster weather-related safeguards and updated maps. These changes were instituted on April 20, 2026, the same day as the San Antonio incident. The company also temporarily suspended robo-taxi operations in San Antonio.
