Federal auto safety regulators said on Monday that they had opened a defect-petition review into claims that Tesla’s newest robotaxis exceeded speed limits in school zones while their automated driving systems were active.
The petition, filed by an unnamed person, includes three videos said to show 2026 Tesla Model Y robotaxis and Cybercabs speeding through school zones, according to Business Insider. The probe opened on Friday, the filing says. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s filing lists no reported crashes or injuries and estimates that about 1,000 vehicles could be affected.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
The review comes as Tesla works to turn robotaxis into a much bigger business. The company has expanded its self-driving Model Y service beyond Austin into other Texas cities and Florida, and in September it added the Cybercab, a car with no steering wheel, to the Austin fleet. Elon Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, has shifted the company’s focus away from traditional vehicle sales toward self-driving, artificial intelligence and robotics.
Federal regulators have watched the rollout from the start. NHTSA opened an audit inquiry into the Cybercab’s self-certification just a few hours after the cars began offering rides in Austin.
School zones have given other robotaxi companies trouble, too. Last year, NHTSA opened a preliminary investigation into Waymo, the Google-owned robotaxi company, after reports that its vehicles passed stopped school buses in Austin and Atlanta. Waymo issued a voluntary recall in December.
In January, a Waymo vehicle struck a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica, Calif. The child’s injuries were minor, according to NHTSA. In a statement published on its website, Waymo said the vehicle “braked hard, reducing speed from approximately 17 mph to under 6 mph before contact was made.”
In Tesla’s case, NHTSA said it would evaluate the complaint before deciding whether to grant the petition and open a formal investigation, or deny it. No date for that decision has been set.