Waymo resumes robotaxi services in San Francisco after blackout

Waymo resumed its robotaxi service in San Francisco on December 21, 2025 evening after halting operations during widespread power outages that began on December 20, 2025 afternoon.

Waymo, owned by Alphabet, paused its driverless ride-hailing vehicles as blackouts disrupted traffic signals and caused congestion across the city.

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said police and fire crews were sent to affected areas to assist with transit.

Pacific Gas and Electric said the outages, caused by a substation fire, affected about 130,000 customers at their peak, with 21,000 still without power on December 21, 2025 morning.

Videos on social media showed several Waymo vehicles stalled in traffic during the blackout.

🔗 Source: CNBC

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Why official incident data may not be available yet

California requires autonomous vehicle makers to report collisions that involve property damage, bodily injury, or death within 10 days to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) 1. Entries may take up to 10 days to appear in public records.
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) oversees commercial robotaxi permits and reporting. It publishes quarterly updates, so material can lag for weeks 2. For events between October 1 and December 31, the next filing is due February 1, 2026 2. Filings include disaggregated incident data, but the agency does not release it in real time.
Real-time incident disclosure rules do not exist. People rely on Waymo’s statement that “Most active trips were completed” during the blackout. Verified data on service disruptions, customer impacts, or whether long stops created traffic hazards is not available.

Near-term infrastructure and procurement considerations

City departments can blunt blackout disruptions by deploying grid-resilient traffic signals with battery backup. Adding vehicle-to-everything (V2X) links such as vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) can help vehicles, including autonomous vehicles (AVs), get signal status when controllers stay powered.
A 130,000-customer outage revealed that AVs can sit longer than usual at dark signals, per Waymo’s statement. This supports research on vehicle-to-vehicle coordination for unpowered intersections.
Autonomous vehicle and mobility tech operators should watch the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA) contract pipeline and budgets after the incident. City offices may issue Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for resilience upgrades after infrastructure failures that draw mayoral and public safety attention.