San Francisco Residents Frustrated by Late-Night Honking from Self Driving Cars

Having noisy neighbors is frustrating, especially when their loudness keeps you up all night, but what's even worse is when you can't tell them to quiet down because they aren't people... They are self-driving cars.

San Francisco Residents Frustrated by Late-Night Honking from Self-Driving Cars

For the past few weeks, residents of a San Francisco neighborhood have been dealing with incessant honking from driverless Waymo cars parked outside their homes.

Randol White, a resident whose condo overlooks a parking lot filled with Waymo vehicles, first noticed the problem about two weeks ago. He was woken up around 4 a.m. by the sound of honking and quickly realized it was coming from the fleet of Waymo cars outside.

"I was like, where is that coming from? And I looked down, and I was like, I think it's coming from the Waymo cars," White said.

What seemed like a one-time annoyance soon became a recurring issue. White and other residents have since reported multiple incidents where the "confused" vehicles start honking at each other in the middle of the night.

"But then it happened again, and again, and I started thinking, well this is an issue," White explained.

More Neighbors Complaining About The Honking

White isn't alone in his frustrations. Several of his neighbors have also been disturbed by the honking, which has disrupted their sleep and daily routines.

"Over the past two weeks, I've been woken up more times overnight than I have combined over 20 years," said Russell Pofsky, who lives in a building adjacent to White's. He described the random honking, which occurs at all hours, as taking a toll on his well-being.

"I could not be more cranky today for a Monday after these past two weeks. It's really at a high level. It's just really, really... it's tough. It affects the way you feel," Pofsky lamented.

What Did Waymo Have To Say About This?

The persistent noise has led residents to reach out to Waymo in search of a solution. In response to the complaints, Waymo acknowledged the issue in a statement to ABC7 News, saying:

"We are aware that in some scenarios our vehicles may briefly honk while navigating our parking lots. We have identified the cause and are in the process of implementing a fix."

On Monday afternoon, White noted that the honking appeared to have subsided, offering a glimmer of hope that the problem might be resolved soon.

Despite the inconvenience, White remains a supporter of the autonomous vehicle company and continues to use their services regularly. "And so I was all about it until the honking started. And all I really want is resolution," he said.

As Waymo works to address the issue, residents are hopeful that the peace and quiet of their neighborhood will soon be restored.

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