Your Daily Guide

Waymo Keeps Getting Ticketed for Parking in Tow-Away Zones, Records Show.

Different types of autonomous vehicles have been deployed in Austin, including Waymo, Tesla, and Zoox, and more are in testing. But one vehicle is getting the lion’s share of the tickets: Waymo.

• Look at the records. Waymo received 123 parking citations from the city between August 2024 and July 2026. Zoox only received one ticket during the same time period, a KXAN investigation found. Because of this, Waymo says it’s refining its operations in Austin to reduce the number of citations. [KXAN]
• Tow-away zones. Zoox’s one citation and 69 of Waymo’s were for parking in a tow-away zone. City officials are starting to study whether Austin needs more short-term parking to help with vehicles stopping in tow-away zones. The city puts the ticket on the vehicle’s dashboard for a human to find when the vehicle heads back to its base for charging. [KXAN]
• Crashes are happening, too. In Austin, dozens of crashes involving autonomous vehicles have been recorded. Waymo has the highest number of crashes with 135, while Tesla recorded 23, Avride recorded 27, and Zoox recorded three. One fatal crash has been reported in Dallas after a pedestrian was pushed into an autonomous vehicle by a human-driven car. [Austin American-Statesman]
• Stuck! This is semi-related: An Austin rider apparently got stuck in a Tesla Cybercab for over an hour on what was supposed to be a 10-minute ride. The rider was headed to the Domain and the vehicle took a detour through East Austin. [Electrek]

Delta-8 Packaging Can Get You Arrested Now, Police Say

Austin police can now make felony arrests before lab testing if the packaging on your gummies and other products says “Delta-8.” But if the product says it contains no more than 0.3% Delta-9 THC, that can show officers it’s legal. [KUT]

Pedicab Drivers Want Rules for Electric Counterparts

Pedicab drivers asked the city to update and enforce its safety rules on electric pedicabs that can hold four to six and even more passengers. The city’s public guidance currently sets a three-passenger limit. [CBS Austin]

Full Lineup for Texas Book Festival Is Out

The complete lineup for Texas Book Festival is now available for you to peruse and it includes some locals! Nixta Taqueria owners Sara Mardanbigi and Edgar Rico, former mayor Steve Adler, Veracruz All Natural owners Reyna and Maritza Vazquez and more are all on the list! [Texas Book Festival]

UT Drops Some Ethnic Studies Majors

The University of Texas at Austin will no longer offer majors in African and African diaspora studies, Mexican American and Latina/o studies, and women’s and gender studies. The provost rejected a proposal to keep the majors and now they will likely be consolidated into a single degree. [The Daily Texan]