On Thursday, September 4, in the center of Moscow, at the intersection of Tverskaya Street and Gazetny Lane, a daring delivery robot from the Sber company blocked the movement of a motorcade with a government Aurus Senat equipped with special light and sound signals.
Street surveillance cameras recorded that first a traffic police car with flashing lights on drove through the intersection on a green light, after which the green light for pedestrians was activated at the pedestrian crossing. It was at this moment that the delivery robot, moving along a programmed route, began to cross the roadway.
However, a motorcade with a government Aurus Senat with special signals on was moving behind the traffic police car. The limousine driver braked sharply to avoid a collision with the autonomous device. The delivery robot, whose weight is about 80 kg, and whose speed does not exceed 5 km/h, calmly continued moving along its trajectory, completely ignoring the special status of the approaching vehicle.
It is noteworthy that this happened after the new amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses came into force on September 1, which toughened the punishment for failure to give way to vehicles with special signals. For ordinary drivers, such a violation now threatens a fine of up to 7.5 thousand rubles or deprivation of rights for up to one year.
It seems that the relevant agencies will have to analyze this incident to adjust the legislation. After all, robots operate according to strict algorithms, while human driving allows for a certain flexibility in interpreting the rules.