While Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system has gained attention for its advanced capabilities, recent safety testing has raised serious concerns about how it handles school zones. The Dawn Project performed safety tests in Santa Barbara, California during October 2022 using Tesla FSD Beta 10.69.2.2. What they found was alarming: the system repeatedly drove past stopped school buses with flashing lights and extended stop arms.
During the tests, internal camera footage confirmed that FSD was fully engaged while vehicles passed school buses. The testing showed no emergency braking or stopping response when approaching these buses. Children crossing streets during bus loading and unloading faced immediate danger from passing vehicles. In all 50 US states, driving around stopped school buses is illegal. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received reports of over 1,000 crashes linked to Tesla’s self-driving technology. NHTSA investigations into multiple fatal crashes have revealed that driver overreliance on automation and insufficient engagement monitoring contributed to serious safety incidents. These investigations underscore insufficient driver monitoring technology that enables inattentive driving while FSD operates.
The safety concerns don’t stop there. FSD also fails to recognize variable school zone speed limit signs. The system doesn’t automatically reduce speed when “Children Present” indicators are active. Instead, the vehicle maintains regular speed limits regardless of temporary school zone conditions. Testing confirmed that FSD appears to rely solely on map data rather than visually recognizing speed limit changes.
FSD fails to recognize variable school zone speed limit signs, maintaining regular speeds regardless of temporary safety conditions.
Experts identify this behavior as a “potentially lethal threat to child pedestrians.” School zones have statistically higher rates of pedestrian accidents involving children. These areas are specifically designed to protect young walkers. When a self-driving system ignores these critical safety zones, it creates dangerous conditions.
The evidence from independent testing is consistent. YouTube demonstrations show Tesla FSD failing in school zone scenarios repeatedly. Uncertainty remains about whether the vehicle actually sees school zone signs or relies completely on mapping information. Either way, the gaps in the system’s capabilities are concerning.
Tesla hasn’t publicly responded to these specific safety findings. The company continues developing its Full Self-Driving system. However, until FSD can reliably recognize and respond to school buses and school zone speed limits, safety experts say the system shouldn’t be trusted near children. Parents and communities depend on all vehicles—including self-driving ones—to follow traffic laws that protect kids.