WRTA Autonomous Bus Program
Harsh Braking Event — March 10, 2026
Technical Incident Summary

Incident Summary
On March 10, 2026, a harsh braking event on a WRTA ADAS bus resulted in a passenger injury
(bumped nose) at approximately 9:26 AM on Wick Ave in Youngstown, OH. Investigation
confirmed the ADAS system was not responsible. The last ADAS mission had ended at 9:24 AM
— roughly 2 minutes before the incident — meaning the brake motor controller had no ADAS
authority and the bus was under full manual control by the operator.

Quick Facts
Date

March 10, 2026

Time

Approximately 9:26 AM

Location

Wick Ave between W Scott St. and University Plaza, Youngstown, OH

Operator

WRTA supervisor/trainer

System Mode

No active mission — manual operation

Last Mission End

9:24:05 AM (operator-terminated)

Passenger Injury

One passenger (young woman) bumped nose

Key Findings
•

No mission log exists for the time of the incident. The system only generates logs when
a mission is active. The last mission ended at 9:24:05 AM, approximately 2 minutes
before the incident.

•

Both the onboard MAX system and the OVID tablet — two independent systems on two
separate computers — confirm no mission was active at the time of the incident.

•

Because no mission was active, the Auto/Manual button was necessarily in the manual
position and the brake motor controller had no autonomous brake authority. Nothing
within the TONY software or equipment could have applied the brakes.

•

Timing analysis shows a ~3x discrepancy between the log's movement-to-stop interval
(36 seconds) and the video footage (12 seconds), ruling out any correlation.

•

GPS distance analysis confirms the deceleration events in log 09-22-32_RC occurred
~38 meters away from the incident location, further confirming they are unrelated.

•

Operator believed the ADAS mission was still running at the time of the incident. This is
inconsistent with both system logs, which confirm the mission had ended at 9:24:05 AM.

•

All 9 mission logs from March 10 have been collected and verified.

Technical Context
ADAS Mission State
The brake motor controller continuously monitors the auto_en signal controlled by the
Auto/Manual button. When no mission is active, the button must be in manual position, and
ADAS cannot engage. The system generates logs only when a mission is active (PLAY button
pressed on OVID tablet). No log coverage exists for the incident period.
Dual-System Corroboration
The MAX onboard log system and OVID tablet are two independent systems running on two
separate computers. Both independently confirm that the last mission ended at 9:24:05 AM and
no mission was active at 9:26 AM when the incident occurred. The OVID log shows PROXY
STATUS: DEAD < ALIVE at 9:24:06 AM, indicating the onboard proxy went offline at mission
end.

Action Items Status
Action Item

Status

Notes

Complete Log Verification

CLOSED

All 9 logs confirmed collected.

Driver Interview

CLOSED

Call with Operator conducted March 30,
2026.

Video Audio Review

CLOSED

Reviewed.

Brake Motor Behavior Clarification

CLOSED

Confirmed: no ADAS brake authority when
no mission active.

Proxy / NTRIP Log Review

CLOSED

Logs uploaded to shared Google Drive and
reviewed.