‘Inattentive’ Tesla driver ticketed in Wisconsin after autopilot exceeded 82 mph

KENOSHA COUNTY, Wis. — Move over, distracted driving.

Driverless technology appears to have spawned a new motor vehicle violation, at least in Wisconsin where a man has been ticketed for “inattentive driving” after his Tesla exceeded 80 mph while on autopilot.

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The unidentified 38-year-old man from Palatine, Illinois, denied to officers that he had fallen asleep in the vehicle just before 8 a.m. Sunday, WLS-TV reported.

According to NBC News, the driver did admit to being tired to the deputy.

The Kenosha County sheriff’s deputy who pulled the man over stated in a news release that as he pulled up alongside the 2019 Tesla, the driver’s head was down and not looking at the road. The deputy also noted that he followed the driver with his lights and siren on for about “2 miles at 82 mph” before the driver pulled off Interstate 94.

Tesla mandates that the operators keep their hands on the steering wheel and maintain control of the vehicle at all times while using the autopilot feature, WLS-TV reported.

Tesla’s semi-autonomous autopilot feature has been linked recently to multiple collisions, including a Saturday night crash in Washington in which a vehicle using the feature crashed into a state trooper’s vehicle, NBC News reported.

Earlier this month, a California man died when his Tesla collided with a halted tractor-trailer. In that instance, the man shared video on social media of him driving on autopilot prior to the crash, the network reported.

Meanwhile, the two passengers in a Tesla that “no one was driving” died when it crashed into a tree in Texas in April, NBC News reported.

Cox Media Group