The chief of the Tempe Police has told the San Francisco Chronicle that Uber is likely not responsible for the Sunday evening crash that killed 49-year-old pedestrian Elaine Herzberg.
“I suspect preliminarily it appears that the Uber would likely not be at fault in this accident," said Chief Sylvia Moir.
Herzberg was "pushing a bicycle laden with plastic shopping bags," according to the Chronicle's Carolyn Said, when she "abruptly walked from a center median into a lane of traffic."
After viewing video captured by the Uber vehicle, Moir concluded that “it’s very clear it would have been difficult to avoid this collision in any kind of mode (autonomous or human-driven) based on how she came from the shadows right into the roadway."
Moir added that "it is dangerous to cross roadways in the evening hour when well-illuminated, managed crosswalks are available."
The police said that the vehicle was traveling 38 miles per hour in a 35 mile-per-hour zone, according to the Chronicle—though a Google Street View shot of the roadway taken last July shows a speed limit of 45 miles per hour along that stretch of road.
At a Monday afternoon press conference, Tempe Sgt. Ronald Elcock said that there were no signs that the vehicle slowed down before striking Herzberg.
Moir's comments are obviously a promising sign for Uber, but they are not the final word on the tragedy. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board have been dispatched to the scene to collect evidence and make an independent assessment.
And even if Uber is not legally at fault, critics may ask whether the vehicle could have done more to anticipate the possibility that the woman might step in front of the Uber vehicle and take appropriate defensive measures—perhaps slowing down or changing lanes to give her a wider berth.
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