Self-driving Uber car kills woman crossing the street in Arizona

An Uber self-driving car has hit and killed a woman crossing the street in Arizona, said the police on Monday, being the first disaster provoked by an autonomous vehicle, says Reuters.

Uber said it was suspending North American tests of its self-driving vehicles, which are currently taking place in Arizona, Pittsburgh and Toronto.

According to Reuters, the so-called robot cars are expected to drastically decrease the motor vehicle fatalities and create billion-dollar businesses. But Monday’s accident emphasizes the possible challenges for the technology as the cars confront real situations involving real people.

Elaine Herzberg (49) was walking her bicycle outside the crosswalk on a road in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe when she was struck by the Uber vehicle traveling at about 40 miles per hour (65 km per hour), said police said. The Volvo XC90 SUV was in autonomous mode with an operator behind the wheel.

Herzberg later died from her injuries in a hospital, said police.

U.S. lawmakers have been debating legislation that would speed introduction of self-driving cars.

“This tragic accident underscores why we need to be exceptionally cautious when testing and deploying autonomous vehicle technologies on public roads,” said Democratic Senator Edward Markey, a member of the transportation committee, in a statement.