Are Waymos Truly 91% to 96% Safer?

Or is the data a best case scenario as of 2025?

From the New York Times opinion section:

The Data on Self-Driving Cars Is Clear. We Have to Change Course.

Dec. 2, 2025

By Jonathan Slotkin

Dr. Slotkin is a neurosurgeon.

… Self-driving car company Waymo recently released data covering nearly 100 million driverless miles in four American cities through June 2025, the biggest trove of information released so far about safety. I spent weeks analyzing the data. The results were impressive. When compared to human drivers on the same roads, Waymo’s self-driving cars were involved in 91 percent fewer serious-injury-or-worse crashes and 80 percent fewer crashes causing any injury. It showed a 96 percent lower rate of injury-causing crashes at intersections, which are some of the deadliest I encounter in the trauma bay.

I’ve watched hundreds of Waymo robot taxis drive by on 6-lane Venice Blvd. in West Los Angeles over the last year. I’ve never seen one blunder. (On the other hand, my wife had a near-miss with a Waymo nearly taking her door off as she was getting out of her car on a side street.)

Moreover …

Paywall here.