Councilmember Janeese Lewis George of the Council of the District of Columbia said on April 1 that she does not believe Washington, D.C. is prepared for the deployment of Waymo autonomous vehicles, citing ongoing regulatory and safety concerns.
The issue comes as city officials continue to weigh public safety and procedural requirements before expanding autonomous vehicle services in the District. The statement from Lewis George addresses the current status of Waymo testing and full autonomous operations in Washington, D.C., referencing updates to the Autonomous Vehicle Act that guide council deliberations on deployment. The District Department of Transportation has yet to finalize permitting pathways originally directed in 2020 legislation, according to City Journal.
"I don’t think our city is ready for Waymo at this moment," Lewis George said, according to City Journal.
Recent data from the Metropolitan Police Department reported 25 traffic fatalities across the District in 2025, down from 52 the prior year. However, pedestrian risks persist even with this decline. Local data underscore the need for measured approaches to new transportation technologies on D.C. roadways where vulnerable users remain a priority. Officials continue to track crash trends through open data portals to inform policy on emerging mobility options, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data compiled through late 2025 recorded 1,429 incidents involving Waymo vehicles from July 2021 onward, many occurring in urban operating zones such as San Francisco and Austin. Reports document cases of vehicles illegally passing school buses with stop arms deployed as well as blocking emergency response routes during incidents. City dashboards in operational markets logged hundreds of additional safety-related events including collisions and near-misses that highlight operational challenges for autonomous systems, according to DAM Law Firm.
Austin Independent School District documented 23 instances in late 2025 of Waymo vehicles passing stopped school buses with extended stop signs, prompting federal reviews and local restrictions on robotaxi operations near school zones. Similar tracking in other cities shows repeated navigation issues around emergency scenes and multimodal infrastructure. These localized patterns inform broader discussions on readiness for full driverless deployment across varying urban environments, according to Education Week.
Lewis George is a third-generation Washingtonian and Ward 4 native who was elected to the Council of the District of Columbia in 2020 and assumed office in January 2021. She serves on committees including Transportation and the Environment while focusing on public service initiatives for working families in the District, according to her official council biography.
