HISPI Project Cerebellum HISPI PROJECT CEREBELLUM

Spokane Transit Authority Onboard Navigation System Reportedly Routed Double-Decker Bus to Low Bridge, Injuring Seven

January 18, 2026

In Spokane, Washington, a tragic incident involving a Spokane Transit Authority double-decker bus serves as a stark reminder of the importance of safe and secure AI practices. The bus, equipped with an onboard navigation/CAD mapping system, was reportedly routed onto Cedar Street, hitting a low-clearance railroad viaduct. Seven out of the ten passengers aboard were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. Subsequent investigations led to warnings for operators not to rely on CAD maps for routing and the temporary removal of double-deckers from service.

This incident underscores the need for responsible AI governance, as misuse or malfunction of such systems can have severe consequences. For those interested in shaping trustworthy AI practices and contributing to harm prevention efforts, we invite you to join us at HISPI Project Cerebellum.
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Matched TAIM controls

Suggested mapping from embedding similarity (not a formal assessment). Browse all TAIM controls

Alleged deployer
spokane-transit-authority
Alleged developer
unidentified-vendor-of-spokane-transit-authority-onboard-cadnavigation-routing-software
Alleged harmed parties
spokane-transit-authority-bus-passengers, spokane-transit-authority-personnel

Source

Data from the AI Incident Database (AIID). Cite this incident: https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1367

Data source

Incident data is from the AI Incident Database (AIID).

When citing the database as a whole, please use:

McGregor, S. (2021) Preventing Repeated Real World AI Failures by Cataloging Incidents: The AI Incident Database. In Proceedings of the Thirty-Third Annual Conference on Innovative Applications of Artificial Intelligence (IAAI-21). Virtual Conference.

Pre-print on arXiv · Database snapshots & citation guide

We use weekly snapshots of the AIID for stable reference. For the official suggested citation of a specific incident, use the “Cite this incident” link on each incident page.