Tesla Robotaxi Faces NHTSA Scrutiny Over Traffic Violations During Austin Launch

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, said it was looking into possible violations of traffic laws involving Tesla Inc.'s TSLA Robotaxis in Austin during Sunday's limited launch event.

What Happened: The regulator said it was gathering additional information about the incidents from Tesla and is aware of the possible traffic law violations, Bloomberg reported on Monday.

Videos on social media have surfaced showing a Robotaxi violating some traffic rules. A video posted by influencer Sawyer Merritt on X showed the Robotaxi driving at 35 miles per hour, exceeding the 30-mile-per-hour speed limit indicated by a sign on the road.

Another video showcases a Robotaxi driving into the wrong lane before it initiates corrective action to get back into the correct lane and continue driving on.

Tesla did not immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comment

Why It Matters: The news comes in as Tesla was already under the scrutiny of the regulatory agency, which was reviewing the company's responses to questions about the FSD or Full Self-Driving technology's performance in poor weather conditions.

However, Tesla sought to keep the responses to the inquiry private, citing fears that the responses contained confidential information, which the automaker's competitors could use to improve their own proprietary self-driving tech or advance driver assistance systems.

Elsewhere, despite the concerns raised, the company reiterated the FSD system's capabilities sharing that the technology can be deployed anywhere it's been approved after the launch event in Austin.

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