Residents living on a quiet historic street in London have raised complaints against Waymo, the self-driving vehicle company owned by Alphabet Inc., after its autonomous cars repeatedly became trapped on a narrow dead-end road and disturbed locals during the night with loud reversing alarms.

The issue has emerged on Elder Street in the Shoreditch area of East London, where Waymo has been testing its self-driving Jaguar SUVs ahead of a possible expansion into the UK market later this year. Residents say the autonomous vehicles regularly enter the small cobbled street despite clear signs indicating it is a “no-through road”.

At the end of Elder Street is a metal barrier that blocks traffic from passing through. While local drivers are familiar with the layout, the self-driving vehicles reportedly continue driving toward the dead end before realising there is no exit. Since the lane is too narrow for easy turning, the cars are forced to reverse the entire way back out of the street.

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During this reversing process, the vehicles emit a loud siren-like warning alarm that residents say has become a serious nuisance, especially during the early hours of the morning. Locals claimed the noise frequently wakes families and children around 4 am and echoes through homes because many buildings in the heritage-protected neighbourhood cannot install modern soundproof windows.

One resident, Jenny Black, reportedly confronted a safety driver after another Waymo vehicle became stuck on the street. Although the cars are autonomous, UK regulations currently require a human safety operator inside the vehicle during testing. According to reports, the driver explained that he was allowing the car to operate independently so he could intervene if it made mistakes. When Black pointed out that the vehicle had already failed by entering the dead-end street, the driver allegedly responded that it was his “first day” on the job.

Another resident, Chris Lloyd, shared videos online showing the self-driving cars slowly reversing out while the alarm sounded continuously. He questioned why the vehicles continued travelling to the blocked end of the road despite the barrier being visible from the street entrance itself.

Waymo began testing its fleet in London in April as part of preparations for future autonomous operations in Britain. Following the complaints, the company issued a statement saying it was testing the technology on different roads across the city to prepare for full autonomous deployment. However, Waymo added that it has now restricted its vehicles from entering Elder Street after receiving feedback from residents.

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