According to the report submitted by the police, the safety operator, who was in control of the self-driving Uber car, was busy with a TV program when the fatal collision took place.

The incident took place in Arizona a few weeks back when the aforementioned car had hit and killed a 49-year-old lady, who was passing by. The investigation revealed that the safety operator was busy watching a talent show, The Voice, rather than monitoring the progress of the car. The revelation will put harsh consequences in front of the operator that may include vehicle manslaughter.

The Temple police even stated that the mishap was completely avoidable if Rafaela Vasquez, the operator of the self-driving car, concentrated on the roads rather than the TV. In order to accomplish the experiments with the self-driving cars on the roads, Uber has made a mandatory rule for the operators. As per the rule, the operators are bound to follow the roads minutely in order to avoid the said circumstances and guide the car in the scenarios when it is unable to take a proper decision.

Rafaela Vasquez had her eyes glued to the smartphone screen while the driverless Volvo was traveling at a speed of 70 KMPH or 44 MPH. She looked on the road about 0.5 seconds before the accident. Due to this, she was not able to take any corrective measures.

Uber has been offering continual support to the investigating team in order to seek justice for the victim. The spokesperson from Uber also stated that the company has designed strict policies in order to curb the usage of the mobile phones during a ride.

The car was traveling at its own pace and identified the vehicles and people coming on its way. However, it failed to recognize the victim as a pedestrian and hit her.