Tesla has expanded the geofenced area of its robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, doubling the original service zone introduced in late June.
The update was rolled out on Monday via the company’s dedicated ride-hailing app and comes “a month or two” before the expansion to the San Francisco Bay Area — pending regulatory approvals.
The new map design, which was first suggested by a user on X, drew attention online for its shape.
CEO Elon Musk responded to the original suggestion with a laughing emoji—and the shape has now been adopted as the official service area in the app’s latest version.
In addition to the expanded coverage, the update adds walking directions to and from pickup points, improved search tools showing if a destination may close before arrival, and the ability to edit a trip after booking.
The robotaxi service launched last month with a fleet of approximately ten driverless Model Y vehicles operating within a five-mile radius in central Austin.
Tesla is charging a flat fare of $4.20 per ride,
The vehicles currently operate with a safety operator in the front passenger seat. Tesla has started sending invitations to more users who signed up through its website, though the service remains limited to a pre-approved group.
Tesla said the expanded geofence now covers about 3.9 square miles (10 km²) more than Waymo’s Austin service area. Musk confirmed last week that the expansion would occur over the weekend.
In the Bay Area, Google-backed firm Cruise saw its permit revoked last year after the company failed to fully disclose an incident in which one of its autonomous vehicles dragged a pedestrian following a hit-and-run.
