A Waymo robotaxi was caught on video rolling through a solid red light at a busy Dallas intersection on Irving Boulevard, a clip from a viewer shows. The self-driving vehicle enters the crossroads against the signal as nearby drivers hit the brakes and swerve to avoid a crash. No one was hurt, and traffic quickly returned to normal, but the close call is arriving right as Waymo ramps up its robotaxi footprint in Texas.
The video was shared with local TV, and FOX 4 reports the company told the station, “Safety is our highest priority at Waymo—for our riders and everyone with whom we share the road.” Waymo also told the station the traffic signal “appeared heavily dimmed” from the vehicle’s right-turn lane and said it is taking steps to address that discrepancy.
What the footage shows
In the short clip, the Waymo vehicle moves into the intersection while the light is red, then continues through active traffic lanes as surrounding drivers slow and steer out of its way. The whole episode lasts only a few seconds yet shows how a single unexpected move by an autonomous car can trigger sudden reactions from multiple human drivers. From the street-level vantage point, the robotaxi does not hit any other vehicles and keeps going after clearing the intersection. The video, recorded on Irving Boulevard, quickly made the rounds online after it was sent to the station.
Federal scrutiny and past incidents
The Dallas near miss comes amid ongoing federal scrutiny of Waymo following separate, higher-profile cases earlier this year, including a January incident in Santa Monica in which a Waymo robotaxi hit a child near an elementary school, according to TechCrunch. Regulators have also probed reports of Waymo vehicles driving past stopped school buses, a pattern that led to a voluntary software recall in December 2025, per a filing by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Waymo’s Texas rollout
Waymo launched limited, invite-only robotaxi rides in Dallas in February as part of a broader Texas rollout, according to KERA. The company has said it plans to scale up fleet size and rider access gradually while it tracks performance in each market.
Local reaction and safety questions
Officials and community advocates in other Texas cities have pointed to similar episodes as a sign that autonomous systems still stumble on edge cases. As FOX 4 noted in earlier reporting, Austin police raised alarms after videos showed robotaxis passing stopped school buses. Lt. Will White said one such pass was “surprising for a system that’s supposed to be significantly safer than humans.” Those reactions have pushed regulators to press Waymo for technical explanations and fixes.
What to watch next
Federal agencies and local transportation officials are expected to watch for follow-up coverage, disclosed incident data, and any software changes tied to the company’s Texas operations. For now, Waymo says it will cooperate with investigators and is reviewing the Dallas clip while it continues to expand service.
