Monmouth Co. Mom, Toddler ‘Nearly Hit’ By Driverless Vehicle

RED BANK, NJ - This Red Bank mom hardly imagined she would nearly be struck by a car after picking up groceries one evening in 2021. But what she would expect even less was to be nearly hit by a vehicle without a driver in the front seat.

While storing her groceries in her car and putting her child in a car seat after shopping at Sickles in Red Bank earlier this month, the mother, who chose to be identified as "NU," noticed a vehicle coming toward the pair out of the corner of her eye - and it wasn't stopping.

“There were very few cars in the parking lot because it was the end of the day. There was one car next to us and I looked, but the lights weren’t on,” said NU.

“I was putting my toddler in the backseat and I almost got hit by a Tesla which was right next to us. It’s so quiet, I didn’t even hear it start up. I just saw movement out of the corner of my eye and I moved my car door back. Thankfully my daughter was already in the car at this point, because I don’t know what would’ve happened if she was still next to me. Yeah, we were nearly hit.”

NU was stunned to see that there was no driver inside the vehicle. She then followed the car with her eyes and witnessed the Tesla pull up to the curb by Sickles to pick up its driver.

“The car’s owner wasn’t even outside when this happened,” NU said. “I’m six months pregnant, so I couldn’t even run across the parking lot to speak with them.”

Instead, NU later posted in local Facebook groups to warn other locals about potential similar incidents.

“I understand what the function is and I understand that it’s supposed to be safe but I also know that there’s been a lot of accidents,” NU said. “I don’t know if the [car] would’ve activated brakes, or if it would’ve recognized my toddler had she been next to me a second earlier. Would it have stopped on a dime, or would it have hit the door into me? I don’t know, but I don’t think it was very safe for somebody to summon it without being in the car.”

Red Bank Police Chief Darren McConnell, responding to the Patch report, said his community has not enacted any ordinances specific to self-driving vehicles. "Typically, that kind of legislation is passed at the state level," he said.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. However, the company maintains a disclaimer on its website: "All Tesla vehicles have the hardware needed for full self-driving capability at a safety level substantially greater than that of a human driver," and "a driver can override any of autopilot's features at any time by steering, applying the brakes, or using the cruise control."

Most recently, Tesla publicly fired several unofficial test drivers last week. The drivers reportedly “did not pay sufficient attention to the road” while testing its “full self-driving” software,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted Friday.

The incident outside of Sickles is far from the first report of a rogue self-driving vehicle. In 2018, a California man was killed while his vehicle was on autopilot. In 2019, a 40-year-old Navy SEAL was watching a Harry Potter movie while his car was driving on autopilot. The Tesla’s technology failed to detect the white side of a tractor-trailer and the man died.

That same year, another Tesla on autopilot drove off a New Brunswick exit ramp and crashed into two traffic sign supports. The driver was uninjured, but was unable to change the course of the car as the steering wheel had locked.

NU says she simply wants Red Bank locals to be aware of the incidents and that similar incidents do occur. She added that she would like to see added legislation surrounding self-driving cars, as New Jersey has no comprehensive legislation surrounding autonomous vehicles as of 2021.

“I think there should be legislation that says people should be in the car and actively engaged because if you’re not actively engaging, that can be extremely dangerous,” NU said. “I think the takeaway is to be a responsible driver if you have this car. Be aware of your surroundings, at least physically be there - you have to be careful because no machine is infallible. There’s always room for error, that’s just being human.”