The death of a beloved neighborhood bodega cat named Kit Kat has left the Mission District of San Francisco in mourning, as reported by The New York Times.
After Kit Kat was tragically run over by a Waymo robotaxi on the evening of October 27, residents began to create a memorial in his honor. The area now features various signs, with some targeting Waymo and others highlighting the dangers posed by human drivers.
Jackie Fielder, who represents the Mission District on San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors, brought up Kit Kat during discussions for a proposed city resolution. This resolution seeks to give local voters the power to decide whether driverless cars should be allowed in their neighborhoods.
“A human driver can be held accountable, can hop out, say sorry, can be tracked down by police if it’s a hit-and-run,” Fielder told the Times. “Here, there is no one to hold accountable.”
Waymo, whose co-CEO recently emphasized safety at a Disrupt event, described the incident as one in which a cat “darted under our vehicle as it was pulling away.” The company expressed their heartfelt condolences to Kit Kat’s owner and the community that loved him.
