Autonomous bus crashes into street tree in Tarama with obstacle detection disabled
An autonomous bus crashed into a street tree in Tarama Village on January 15, 2026, when its obstacle detection system was disabled during a test run. The vehicle became unstable while traveling at 20 km/h and struck the roadside tree, causing damage but no injuries to the four people on board.
What happened
On January 15, 2026, at approximately 5:00 p.m., an autonomous bus undergoing demonstration testing in Tarama Village crashed into a street tree after mounting a roadside embankment.
The vehicle had its obstacle detection system disabled during technical verification and was traveling at 20 km/h when it became unstable and crashed.
Four people were on board—a driver and technicians—with no passengers. No injuries occurred, but the bus's bumper and front windshield were damaged.
Reported impact
Following the crash, the autonomous bus halted operations on January 16, 2026, with no restart date scheduled at the time of reporting.
Governance controls
Okinawa Prefecture was conducting the demonstration testing in Tarama Village starting January 13, 2026, with the stated purpose of consolidating mobility services.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
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