Google Self-Driving Car Involved In Mountain View Crash

MOUNTAIN VIEW (CBS SF) – Google confirmed that one of the company’s self-driving cars was involved in an accident Friday afternoon on city streets in Mountain View.

According to a statement from Google, the self-driving car was northbound on Phyllis Ave., when another vehicle traveling west on El Camino Real, ran a red light and hit the passenger side of Google’s autonomous car.

The accident happened at about 1:30 p.m. Mountain View police said there were no injuries.

Cell phone video obtained by KPIX 5 showed the Google car on a flatbed tow truck after the accident with visible damage on the passenger side of the vehicle.

Police said there was an individual inside the Google car at the time of the accident.

Google later confirmed that the car was “in control” — or, in other words, self-driving mode — when the incident occurred.

Earlier this week, Obama administration officials previewed long-awaited guidance that attempts to bring self-driving cars to the nation’s roadways safely – without creating so many roadblocks that the technology can’t make it to market quickly.