選手村事故、書類送検　自動運転バス操作のトヨタ社員―警視庁

　昨年８月、東京パラリンピックの選手村（東京都中央区晴海）でトヨタ自動車の自動運転バス「ｅパレット」と柔道（視覚障害）男子の北薗新光選手（３０）が接触した事故で、警視庁は６日、自動車運転処罰法違反（過失運転致傷）容疑で、車両を運転操作していた同社の男性社員（３９）を書類送検した。捜査関係者への取材で分かった。容疑を認めているという。
　捜査関係者などによると、バスの運行時の自動運転技術は、システムが人の運転を支援する「レベル２」だった。同庁は、操作していた社員の過失で、車両の機能や構造に問題はなかったと判断した。（2022/01/06-12:00）

Tokyo police sent to public prosecutors on Thursday papers on an employee of Toyota Motor Corp. over a self-driving bus accident at the Paralympic athletes village in Tokyo that inflicted injury on a visually impaired Japanese athlete.
   The male Toyota employee, 39, is suspected of negligent driving resulting in injury, according to investigative sources. He has admitted to the charges, the sources said.
   The employee was driving an e-Palette autonomous electric bus of Toyota, equipped with Level 2 autonomous driving technology that offers driving support.
   The Metropolitan Police Department has concluded that the accident was caused by his negligence and that there were no problems with the vehicle's functions or structure.
   The Toyota employee allegedly hit judoka Aramitsu Kitazono, 30, at around 2 p.m. on Aug. 26 last year at the athletes village in the Harumi waterfront district of the Japanese capital, leaving the Paralympian slightly injured.