Tesla listed as Robotaxi operator in Austin, Texas ahead of launch

Tesla is officially listed as a known autonomous vehicle operator in Austin, Texas, by the transportation department ahead of the upcoming robotaxi launch this month.

Cities in Texas cannot regulate autonomous vehicles. However, the state law, SB 2205, Texas Transportation Code 545,452 (b) states autonomous vehicles must follow the same regulations as cars in which a driver is present, including a required insurance and registration, and follow the traffic laws.

The Texas Department of Transportation created the Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) task force in 2019 to become a central point for CAV improvements in Texas. This task force is responsible for providing the state with a single, unified resource for information regarding the coordination and advancement of CAV technologies across the state.

Since cities cannot regulate AVs, Austin has collaborated with autonomous vehicle companies to offer staff’s knowledge on the local transportation network to help their vehicles operate with increased safety.

Tesla is listed as an autonomous vehicle operator in Austin, Texas

Tesla’s listing as a known autonomous vehicle operator comes at a time of a report, which suggests that the EV maker is trying to block the city of Austin from releasing public records about its plans for launching a robotaxi service.

In April, Austin’s public information officer revealed that third parties had asked the city not to provide records to protect their privacy or property interests. In the follow-up, the Texas Attorney General’s office, which handles public records disputes, mentioned that the release of such information could reveal sensitive commercial and trade information, including emails between Tesla and Austin officials.

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, shared the plan of launching robotaxis in August last year, and chose Texas and California as the first two cities to bring the autonomous robotaxi service online. While an approval in California is still pending, Texas will be seeing Tesla’s robotaxi launch first.

The company planned to deploy 10-20 robotaxis in the trial run in Austin, and the closest launch date could be somewhere this month. However, Tesla has not shared any official date on this matter.