Waymo Cars Record 68% Fewer Crashes Than Human Drivers

Waymo's fully driverless vehicles recorded 68% fewer police-reportable crashes per mile than human drivers across four U.S. cities, according to a study released Wednesday by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The institute said researchers analyzed crashes involving autonomous vehicles between 2021 and 2024 and compared Waymo's Level 4 fleet with conventional vehicles operating in the same locations. After removing duplicate reports and ineligible events, researchers focused on crashes a typical driver would likely report to police. Over the study period, Waymo's fleet accumulated approximately 50 million autonomous miles. Compared with human drivers, the vehicles experienced 85% fewer single-vehicle crashes and 81% fewer injury crashes. Safety performance varied by city, with Phoenix showing 76% fewer crashes, Los Angeles 71% fewer and San Francisco 35% fewer. Austin showed a 4% higher crash rate, though researchers said the sample size there remains too small for meaningful conclusions. IIHS President David Harkey said the results demonstrate that, on a limited scale, driverless vehicles can outperform human drivers, who remain vulnerable to distraction, fatigue, impairment and other human errors. Researchers emphasized that current crash reporting systems make it difficult to accurately compare autonomous vehicles with human drivers. Autonomous vehicle companies must report qualifying crashes but are generally not required to disclose mileage data. Waymo voluntarily releases its mileage data, while most competitors do not. The institute said a standardized reporting system that includes both crash data and vehicle mileage across all operators will be essential as autonomous driving expands.