Austin ISD letter counts 19 Waymo passings of stopped school buses

Austin Independent School District has counted 19 instances of Waymo automated vehicles passing its stopped school buses since the 2025-26 school year began, a November 20, 2025 letter from the district's Office of the General Counsel says. The letter is in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration file for investigation PE25013.

The letter puts the total at 19, with five after a software letter. It says the district was made aware of three additional violations after an email on November 18, 2025. It states there are now 19 different instances of Waymo vehicles passing Austin ISD school buses in violation of Texas Transportation Code Section 545.066 and Austin City Code Section 12-1-73, and that the vehicles are averaging 1.5 violations a week. Five of the 19 came after a November 5, 2025 Waymo letter that reassured the district certain software updates were in place.

One vehicle passed while a student was still in the road. The letter says a Waymo automated vehicle was recorded driving past a stopped school bus only moments after a student crossed in front of it, while the student was still in the road. It says the vehicle then proceeded through a crosswalk and an intersection where all other vehicles were stopped. Senior Counsel Jennifer Bergeron Oliaro signed the letter, which says, "Waymo's software updates are clearly not working as intended nor as quickly as required."

The district demands a pause during two commute windows. The letter demands that Waymo immediately cease automated-vehicle operations from 5:20 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. until more in-depth software updates are completed and Waymo can guarantee the vehicles will comply with the law. It asks for confirmation by close of business on November 20, 2025, Pacific time. It says the district is evaluating all potential legal remedies and intends to take whatever action is necessary to protect its students, if required. It says a copy of the correspondence will be shared with the relevant state and federal agencies, including the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles and NHTSA.

An attached list shows 19 violation times. The same file includes the list the letter says reflects the violations. It shows 19 violation times, from 6:35 on August 22, 2025 through 13:54 on November 14, 2025. Five of those times fall after November 5, 2025.

NHTSA opened a recall query on November 6, 2026. Recall query RQ26006 opened on November 6, 2026, prompted by PE25013. It covers 2,895 vehicles with Waymo's fifth-generation automated driving system. The resume says investigators have identified a large number of reported incidents of Waymo vehicles passing stopped school buses with red lights flashing or the stop arm extended, and that other reports are traffic citations from Austin ISD. The resume marks incident totals confidential and does not state a count of 19.

The query is testing a recall filed in December 2025. Waymo filed recall 25E084 on December 10, 2025, for a software issue that may cause a vehicle to pass a stopped school bus when the red lights are flashing or the stop arm is extended. The resume says the software update was completed for all affected vehicles on November 17, 2025, and that a majority of the incidents identified during PE25013 occurred after that date. The query is open to assess whether that remedy was adequate and to identify the causes of the later reports.