Uber has announced the suspension of self-driving vehicle testing at different North American cities following a fatal mishap.

In an incident in the US state of Arizona, a self-driving sport utility vehicle of Uber has killed a pedestrian crossing a street, reported Reuters.

The accident happened in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe and was reported to be the first fatality involving an autonomous car.

Following the incident, Uber suspended the ongoing self-driving vehicle tests at Arizona, Pittsburgh and Toronto.

The victim, Elaine Herzberg, aged 49, was walking with her bicycle outside the crosswalk on a four-lane road when she was hit by the self-driving vehicle travelling at nearly 65km/h.

“At the time of the event, the Volvo XC90 SUV vehicle was travelling in autonomous mode with an operator behind the wheel.”

At the time of the event, the Volvo XC90 SUV vehicle was travelling in autonomous mode with an operator behind the wheel.

Tempe Police Sergeant Ronald Elcock was quoted by the news agency as saying: “The pedestrian was outside of the crosswalk. As soon as she walked into the lane of traffic she was struck.”

The police are yet to determine if the self-driving vehicle decelerated before the collision.

Tempe authorities are currently investigating the accident, while Canada’s transportation ministry in Ontario is also reviewing the accident.

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have also sent their teams to investigate the accident, reported abc.net.au.