Rush-hour drivers on Olympic Boulevard got more than brake lights Friday evening when a pack of boys was spotted hanging out of a Waymo robotaxi inching through Santa Monica traffic, according to witnesses.
The incident, captured in photos that spread online Tuesday, unfolded around 6 p.m. A group of boys reportedly perched on the open window ledges of the driverless car, leaning their upper bodies into the street as cars shuffled around them. One boy in the front seat looked to be around 10 years old, while the boys in the back appeared to be about 15, according to the witness who took the photos.
That witness, Rojia Shahsavani, told ABC7 Los Angeles that one of the teens was casually using a cellphone to take selfies as the robotaxi rolled along. She said she followed the vehicle for several blocks and, concerned, called Waymo customer service from her car.
Shahsavani said the representative on the line told her the company had the ability to remotely shut the car down. That did not happen, she said, and the Waymo continued driving until it turned off Olympic. Other drivers honked and yelled at the boys to get back inside the vehicle as it moved through traffic, according to Shahsavani.
"It was hard to imagine teenagers hanging out of the ledge of a Waymo," she told ABC7 Los Angeles, adding that she was extremely worried about the safety of the boys, nearby drivers and pedestrians.
Waymo’s Recent Scrutiny Near Santa Monica
The photos are landing in a city already on edge over driverless cars. In January, a Waymo vehicle struck a child near a Santa Monica elementary school and triggered a federal investigation, according to reporting that a robotaxi hit a child near a Santa Monica elementary school, which noted that Waymo said the car slowed significantly before contact.
Company Rules and Teen Riders
Waymo says it has policies intended to prevent unaccompanied minors from riding alone in most of its markets, relying on in-car cameras and account checks to enforce age limits. Critics and labor groups, however, have pressed regulators to dig into how those safeguards actually work in California, WIRED reports.
Why This Matters Locally
Waymo’s presence in Santa Monica has already stirred neighborhood angst. Residents have complained about noise at charging hubs and fought over overnight operations at company facilities. Those disputes over charging-site activity and other quality-of-life concerns have been chronicled by the Los Angeles Times, and they color how locals react when a robotaxi becomes the center of a public safety scare.
The new photos are now fueling fresh questions about how young riders are using driverless cars and whether companies or regulators have effective tools to step in when risky behavior happens in real time. For more background, see Waymo robotaxi hit a child and our earlier coverage of the company’s clashes with Santa Monica officials.
