A woman has died after she was struck by a self-driving Uber car in Tempe, Arizona.

The incident occurred on Sunday evening at 10pm when the pedestrian was crossing the street away from a pedestrian crossing.

"The vehicle was travelling northbound ... when a female walking outside of the crosswalk crossed the road from west to east when she was struck by the Uber vehicle," police said in a statement.

The vehicle, which was part of Uber’s fleet of driverless cars, was in autonomous mode with a safety driver at the wheel.

Video from SBS showed the dented Volvo XC90 SUV equipped with the self-driving sensors and cameras, alongside a damaged pushbike.

“We are aware that Uber is cooperating with local authorities in their investigation,” Volvo said in a statement.

Uber requires all autonomous vehicle tests on public roads to have a safety driver at the wheel.

“Our hearts go out to the victim’s family. We’re fully cooperating with @TempePolice and local authorities as they investigate this incident,” Uber tweeted about the incident.

The accident is believed to be the first fatality involving a pedestrian from a self-driving car crash.

Uber announced that it has suspended the testing of all its self-driving cars in Tempe, Pittsburgh, Toronto and San Francisco.

Former US Secretary of Transportation, Anthony Foxx, said the incident was a “wake up call to the entire industry and government to put a high priority on safety."

Although the legal implications of the incident are unclear, it is possible that the safety driver could be charged.

The accident comes as discussion surrounding autonomous vehicles on public roads continues to mount.

Just last Friday, Uber and Waymo (Alphabet’s self-driving project) urged Congress to speed up new legislation that will allow self-driving cars on public roads across the United States.

Additionally, Arizona has in recent times become a hotbed for the testing of autonomous vehicles.

Governor of Arizona, Doug Ducey, earlier this month signed an executive order legalising the operation of driverless cars on state roads, provided they meet safety standards.

Unlike California, Arizona does not require companies to report on a collision occurring.

In 2016, after a run-in with the Californian government, Uber packed up its autonomous vehicle testing in Silicon Valley and moved it to Arizona due to the less stringent regulations.