Toyota resumes Paralympic "self-driving" car service after accident involving athlete

Tokyo, Japan - Toyota resumed its use of the 16 vehicle fleet of self-driving vehicles in the Olympic Village on Tuesday after an accident last week injured a Paralympic athlete, removing him from competition.

The Toyota electric self-driving e-Palette vehicle, parked at the Olympic Village in Tokyo.
The Toyota electric self-driving e-Palette vehicle, parked at the Olympic Village in Tokyo.  © IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

According to Elektrek even Toyota's Chief Executive, Akio Toyoda, is less than satisfied with the current state of the company's self-driving tech, and he believes "autonomous vehicles are not yet realistic for normal roads."

Operators will undergo more training, and the pods will produce louder warning sounds to help avoid accidents like the one on Thursday, in which 30-year-old Judo competitor Aramitsu Kitazonoa, who is visually-impaired, did not see the pod approaching.

After initially parking the fleet after the accident and reviewing the situation, Toyota has said that they can continue operations, but an in-vehicle operator will control all acceleration and stopping.

First flying car gets official liftoff to fly in a toast to the future!
Cars First flying car gets official liftoff to fly in a toast to the future!

Toyota has also more than tripled the number of traffic guards at intersections in the village to decrease liability.

It's not clear why Toyota even continues to call these vehicles "self-driving" when they require so many extra people to operate.

The specially designed e-Palette self-driving pods were hailed as being perfect for the Olympic Village, particularly for their ease of access for athletes with disabilities during the Paralympics.

The initial accident occurred after the operator assumed that Kitazonoa saw the oncoming vehicle and would move out of the way, which meant the car wasn't stopped. The automatic system also failed to stop the vehicle.

Kitazonoa only sustained minor injuries but was ruled out of competition.

Cover photo: IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

More on Cars: