Driverless Car Caught on Video Turning Left into Bike Lane on Austin Streets

Austin-area cyclist Robert Foster already knows to ride defensively. The rider told Fox 7 Austin that he already assumes every car is dangerous and gives them a wide berth.

But even the best defensive riding tactics wouldn’t keep a cyclist safe in the scenario he said he’s witnessed several times: a driverless vehicle swerving into the bike lane when making a left hand turn.

“Crazy that they are testing these in the neighborhoods with the most walkers and bikers,” Foster wrote on Twitter. All of the incidents of the self-driving cars in bike lanes occurred in the West Campus area of Austin.

Cruise, the self-driving car company whose vehicles are shown in Foster’s videos, began testing driverless vehicle in Austin last year. Cruise claims the self-driving vehicles would not have entered the bike lane if a cyclist were present.

The company released a statement to Fox 7 Austin that reads, “Safety is Cruise's top priority, not just for our passengers but for everyone we share the road with. Our technology is always improving and we’ll be reviewing our lane-mapping in that area.”

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