Waymo has filed its fourth safety recall since February 2024 after its driverless cars were caught entering closed freeway construction zones, a move that affects their entire US fleet of 3,871 vehicles running the 5th Generation automated driving system (ADS).

The underlying issue appears to be a failure in priority logic. Waymo's ADS sometimes fails to recognize construction zones and can mistakenly drive through them while avoiding other hazards on the freeway.

Crucially, there is yet no software fix for this potentially dangerous fault. As a temporary measure, all vehicles have been restricted from entering freeways entirely. This recall comes amid previous incidents in May 2025 where over 1,200 robotaxis were recalled due to collisions with stationary barriers.

Waymo's statement highlighted their commitment to road safety: 'We identified an area of improvement regarding performance around freeway construction zones and are making improvements.'