Tesla on Autopilot rear-ends work truck along Pennsylvania interstate, police say

A Tesla on Autopilot slammed into the back of a work truck along a Pennsylvania interstate on Friday night, according to police.

Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) said the Tesla was driving in the middle lane of I-76 east when it rear-ended a Freightliner semi-truck that was parked in the same lane and providing traffic control for a lane closure.

PSP said the electric car lost control due to the fact it was operating on its Autopilot software. 

The 18-year-old driver of the Tesla was cited for “careless driving.”

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According to police, no one was injured in the crash.

FOX Business reached out to Tesla for comment on the crash, but has not yet heard back.  

“Autopilot, Enhanced Autopilot and Full Self-Driving Capability are intended for use with a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to take over at any moment,” a page on Tesla’s website states. “While these features are designed to become more capable over time, the currently enabled features do not make the vehicle autonomous.”

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According to Tesla, the number of miles its global fleet of Model S, 3, X and Y vehicles have driven on Autopilot totaled over 9 billion. It reported seeing “one crash for every 4.58 million miles driven in which drivers were using Autopilot technology” in 2022’s last quarter.

U.S. regulators have been investigating a series of accidents where Tesla vehicles on Autopilot collided with parked emergency vehicles.

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In February, a Tesla Model S crashed into a stationary fire truck in Walnut Creek, California, killing the car’s driver.

The crash sparked an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 

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The electric vehicle maker built its 4 millionth vehicle in early March. Tesla said in January its vehicle production for the year 2022 came in at over 1.3 million, including about 439,700 built in the fourth quarter.

Reuters contributed to this report.