A Phoenix police motorcycle was hit by a Tesla Model X supposedly operating on auto-pilot recently, authorities stated.
The event took place a couple of days prior to an accident involving an automated Uber vehicle.
Phoenix cops on Monday verified that the incident took place when a Tesla motorist and an on-duty officer left the Black Canyon Freeway onto Utopia Road on the afternoon of March 21.
The officer, who remained in front of the Tesla motorist, stopped for a stoplight, authorities stated. After also pausing, the Tesla started moving forward, triggering the officer to jump off his motorbike and move away. The cars struck the fallen motorcycle, however no damage was reported to either.
The officer later approximated the car was moving at about three miles per hour, police stated.
The Tesla motorist informed cops that he had the car in auto-pilot mode during the time of the crash, but Phoenix police spokesperson Sgt. Alan Pfohl said investigators were unable to prove that statement.
Due to the fact that it was such a small collision, he stated, there will be no more investigation. The officer was not hurt, and no citations were released.
“It was basically a tap,” Pfohl stated, adding that, under other circumstances, it would not have been considered an accident. “It wasn’t even a reportable accident. If it wasn’t including an officer, we would not have even investigated it.”
Tesla officials said Tuesday that they had no report of such an incident.
