Tesla's Robotaxis Blow Through School Zones, NHTSA Petition Alleges

Commenters debated allegations that Tesla robotaxis blow through school zones by arguing over whether FSD is simply mirroring training data and common practice or failing basic legal and safety expectations. Some, like lesuorac and sandworm101, suggested the cars are re-enacting learned behavior and even creating new training data, while bryanlarsen pointed out Tesla has said FSD will follow common practice rather than the letter of the law. Others pushed back: konschubert insisted a car should not have a "break the law" mode, chinathrow and stetrain raised personal liability and enforcement concerns, and Analemma_ noted that even Waymo - which commenters described as more safety-focused - has struggled in school-zone scenarios. Defenders of automation, such as lotsofpulp, argued computers can react faster than humans, but Tepix warned about children darting from behind parked cars.

Discussion split further over how speed limits are set and what practical behavior should be. vessenes, criddell and Karrot_Kream explained municipal variation and the 85th-percentile practice, while ToucanLoucan and others argued speed limits often function as revenue or political tools and that road design, not merely posted limits, governs safety. Some said a robotaxi obeying limits could be dangerously slow if surrounding traffic speeds up (vessenes), while Xylakant countered danger comes from differential speeds and non-vehicle road users. Comments also touched on enforcement, design fixes (traffic circles, humps), regulatory differences with Europe, and skepticism about Tesla’s approach versus stricter safety standards.