# Austin firefighters want the steering wheel back

> Tesla's Cybercab has no steering wheel, and the people who have to move it in an emergency are not happy.
- Title: Austin firefighters want the steering wheel back · Futurism
- Summary: Tesla's Cybercab has no steering wheel, and the people who have to move it in an emergency are not happy. A touchscreen is a bad control surface for someone…
- Keywords: tesla, cybercab, self-driving, first responders, regulation, science, technology, Austin, firefighters, want, steering, wheel
- Source: Futurism — https://futurism.com/future-society/firefighters-texas-telsa-cybercab-glaring-issue-steering-wheel
- Author: Joe Wilkins
- Published: 2026-09-11T17:52:01+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: tesla, cybercab, self-driving, first responders, regulation, science, technology
## Gold Cybercabs hit Austin
Tesla's new robotaxi is on the streets of Austin, butterfly doors and all. The city's fire department has one objection: there is no steering wheel.
## Manual controls live on a screen
Austin Fire chief Matthew McElearney told NBC that the Cybercab's manual controls run through the onboard touchscreen, which is a problem when responders need to move the car.
## Screens need power
McElearney listed the drawbacks plainly: the touchscreen needs electricity, caps how fast you can move the vehicle, and takes practice to use at all.

> You need power to do that. It does have some limitations on speed.
## Gloves, dust and sweat
Fire scenes are not clean rooms. Responders wear gloves, get covered in grime, and often reach vehicles that are damaged or dead, all of which defeat a touchscreen.
## When it zigs instead of zags
The chief's worry is precision. Nudging a two-ton car with fingertips on glass invites the wrong input at the worst possible moment.

> What I would not want is for somebody to put their fingertips on it and try to slowly roll it, and then it zigs when it's supposed to zag.
## Make it a federal rule
McElearney has the same concern about Zoox and Waymo, and says the choice should not sit with carmakers. He wants regulators to require a steering wheel.

> We need the feds to step up to the plate on this.
## Key takeaway

A touchscreen is a bad control surface for someone in gloves, in the dark, in a car that may have lost power.