A video has been viewed millions of times on social media showing a fully autonomous Tesla car failing to detect a moving train and stopping automatically, causing chaos. .
The car's owner and driver, Craig Doty II, told NBC News he takes responsibility for the accident, but also said he believes Tesla's self-driving technology, at least the one in his car, is a flawed product.
“I was the only person in the car. I was the only person in that accident. So, yes, it was my fault, no doubt about that,” Doty said. “But more than that, I think maybe that damn car didn't recognize the train.”
“You tend to be complacent when you know what you're doing,” he said of Tesla's technology. “And usually more cautious than I am as a driver.”
The accident occurred on the morning of May 8th. Doty, a certified general appraiser in Ohio, was driving at about 60 mph, according to the Tesla accident report. The speed limit on the road was 55 mph, according to Doty and a police report on the accident. Drivers can request accident reports from Tesla, which are created using data that each car sends to Tesla's servers. Doty requested a report of the accident and provided it to NBC News, along with video of the accident recorded by the car.
In the video, the car sped towards the railroad crossing with the moving train, then suddenly swerved to the right, collided with the arm of the railroad crossing, and slid off the road.
Conditions were foggy, according to car footage and police reports, but dash cam footage from the accident scene showed a moving freight car and flashing lights showing an active railroad crossing signal at least five seconds before the crash. It was recorded that a red light was visible.
The accident caused extensive damage to the right front side of the car, and photos taken by Doty show the car's bodywork in pieces and the right front wheel twisted at a sharp angle.
Doty said his Tesla didn't slow down as it approached the train, so he slammed on the brakes, manually turned the steering wheel and drove his car off the road to avoid the train.
“I thought there's no way I wouldn't see the train,” he said. “There's no way I wouldn't see the flashing lights. Sure, it was foggy, but I could still see the lights.”
Tesla's Full Self-Driving mode, often abbreviated as FSD, is touted as a version of self-driving and has been touted by CEO Elon Musk as a key part of the company's future. Tesla said the technology is still in beta mode, meaning it's in testing, and that it is selling the product to drivers for $8,000.
FSD requires drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel while behind the wheel of the vehicle. Tesla calls this application of technology “supervised.” Tesla says on its website that “vehicles will be able to drive autonomously almost anywhere with minimal driver intervention and will continue to improve.”
Further down on the same page of the website, it says: “Currently enabled Autopilot and Full Self-Driving features require active supervision of the driver and do not make the vehicle self-driving. Autonomous driving will depend on achieving reliability far beyond that of human drivers, proven by billions of miles of experience, and on regulatory approval, which may take longer in some jurisdictions. there is.”
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.
FSD's capabilities and its marketing have come under scrutiny, both in terms of what it can do and whether drivers are fully aware that they still need to pay attention. Tesla issued a software update to FSD in February, citing concerns about issues with stopping at intersections. Autopilot, another Tesla self-driving feature, has also come under scrutiny by regulators.
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A spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the regulator is “aware of this incident and is gathering further information from the manufacturer.”
Doty said he was behind the wheel during the entire accident. The accident report prepared by Tesla, which he provided to NBC News, also states that the system recognized that he was behind the wheel shortly before the accident.
Tesla's report said the car was in full self-driving mode at a speed of about 60 miles per hour until Doty slammed on the brakes and swerved.
Doty has owned a Tesla since last year and said he has come to rely on the full self-driving mode, which he said has made long commutes some of the strain, and he estimates he has driven 20,000 miles with the feature activated.
“Once you get past the inconvenience of having a robot do everything for you, it's convenient because it usually does it better or more carefully than you could,” he said.
But he said he has had at least one similar experience where the FSD appeared to fail.
Doty said the car was nearly hit by a moving train after rounding a sharp curve near the tracks in November.
He said the Tesla car did not slow down but was able to stop, but still hit the crossbar and damaged the windshield. He said he chalked up the intersection after the turn. Mr. Doty provided documentation of his correspondence with Tesla's insurance claims adjuster at the time, including a detailed description of the incident.
After the second train accident, a police officer received a complaint. According to the police report, the car was in full self-driving mode at the time of the accident.
The officer also gave Doty a citation for “failure to maintain control” of a vehicle, and he was fined $175. At Thursday's hearing, Doty did not contest the citation and asked for leniency considering the car was in full self-driving mode. Doty said the judge agreed to quash his citation if he can prove by July that the damage to the rails will be repaired and paid for by Doty or his insurance.
“I think Elon Musk can turn himself in and pay the fine,” he said. “I understand that I am in control of the vehicle, but I do not intend to cause mayhem, cause a wreck, or drive erratically out of control.”
After the incident, Doty posted a video of the crash to an online Tesla forum seeking more information about similar incidents. Someone captured the video and posted it to X, and the video of the accident has since been viewed millions of times.
Doty said he was notified by the Tesla Crash Center on Wednesday that the car was a total loss, but that the company had not provided any video or contacted him about the accident.
There are several signs and past accidents that point to shortcomings in Tesla's fully self-driving mode, many of which are documented online.
According to The Intercept, in November 2022, a Tesla vehicle in Full Self-Driving mode suddenly stopped on a major highway, causing a pileup of eight vehicles. An NHTSA report released last month found dozens of crashes related to Full Self-Driving and pointed to an Autopilot-related recall the company implemented in December.
“Such inadequate control could lead to predictable driver disengagement and avoidable crashes while driving,” NHTSA wrote in the report.
