According to the police, an incident occurred on Friday night in Pennsylvania where a Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) vehicle, utilizing its Full Self-Driving (FSD) “autopilot” software, collided with a stationary truck on a highway, further intensifying the examination of the automaker's driver assistance system.
On Monday, the Pennsylvania State Police revealed that the Tesla vehicle was traveling in the middle lane when it collided with the back of a stationary Freightliner semi-truck. The truck was parked in the same lane and was serving as traffic control for a closure in the right lane.
No injuries were reported. However, the 18-year-old male driver was charged with "careless driving."
This latest incident adds to a series of incidents currently under investigation by U.S. regulators where Tesla vehicles on autopilot collided with parked emergency vehicles.
In February, a tragic incident occurred in Walnut Creek, California, involving a Tesla Model S that collided with a stationary fire truck. Regrettably, the collision resulted in the death of the driver of the Tesla vehicle. This incident prompted an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Tesla says that their FSD software is designed to allow a car to autonomously steer, accelerate, and brake within its designated lane. However, it is important to note that these features still require active driver supervision and do not render the vehicle fully autonomous.
Shares of TSLA are up 0.85% in pre-market trading on Tuesday.