The family of the woman who was fatally struck by a self-driving Uber SUV in Arizona has reached a settlement with the company.
Attorney Cristina Perez Hesano said “the matter has been resolved” between Uber and the daughter and husband of Elaine Herzberg, 49, who was killed when she was hit by an autonomous Volvo XC90 in Tempe this month, Reuters reported.
The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Hesano’s law firm of Bellah Perez in Glendale, Arizona, said Herzberg’s relatives would have no further comment on the matter.
Herzberg was walking her bicycle outside a crosswalk on a four-lane road when she was struck.
Dashcam video from the Volvo that was released by Tempe police showed the SUV traveling along a dark street March 18 when suddenly the headlights illuminated Herzberg in front of the vehicle.
Other footage showed the human driver behind the wheel mostly looking down and not at the road in the seconds before the accident, which was the first-ever death by an autonomous vehicle.
Reuters reported this week that Uber reduced the number of safety sensors on test cars when it changed its fleet over from Ford Fusions to Volvos in 2016.
Early test vehicles used seven lidar sensors — which work similar to radar but use laser light rather than sound waves — as well as seven radar units and 20 cameras.
Uber’s newer Volvo test vehicles only use a single, roof-mounted lidar, along with 10 radars and seven cameras, Reuters found.
The single, roof-mounted sensor leaves a 3-meter blind spot around vehicles, according to Marta Hall, president of Velodyne, the company that built the lidar sensors.
The exact cause of the fatal crash is still under investigation, and it is unclear whether the lidar sensor played a definitive role. Uber has suspended its testing in the wake of the accident.
Toyota and chipmaker Nvidia also have suspended self-driving car testing on public roads as they and other companies await the results of the investigation.
With Post wires




