California's autonomous vehicle fleet triples, with AV crash rate lower per million miles vs conventional vehicles.

California has seen a threefold increase in registered autonomous vehicles (AVs) for testing, with companies like Cruise, Waymo, and Zoox Inc. expanding their fleets. Despite a high crash rate of 96.65 per 1,000 vehicles in 2022—much higher than the 6.95 for all vehicles—AVs have a lower crash rate per million miles traveled at 26.32, compared to 0.69 for conventional vehicles. This suggests that AV technology may enhance road safety in the future.