NTSB opens investigation into Tesla crash in Southern California

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Tuesday announced it will dispatch two investigators to launch a field probe into a crash involving a Tesla vehicle reportedly operating on Autopilot.

The safety agency said the investigation will focus on “driver and vehicle factors.” The investigators are expected to arrive in Culver City, Calif., the site of the crash, on Wednesday.

The board said earlier Tuesday that it was still “gathering information” about the incident.

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According to The Mercury News, a Tesla Model S crashed into a parked fire truck while traveling on Interstate 405 on Monday.

The Culver City Firefighters union wrote on Twitter that the driver in the Tesla said the vehicle was operating on Autopilot.

The Hill has reached out to Tesla for comment on the NTSB investigation. 

The NTSB previously conducted a probe into a 2016 Florida crash involving a Tesla vehicle that had been operating on Autopilot. In a report issued last year, the board faulted both the “truck driver’s failure to yield the right of way” and the Tesla driver’s “overreliance” on the automation feature.

As a result of the probe, the board at the time announced several new safety proposals.