Tesla has significantly enlarged its Robotaxi service area in Austin. The expansion comes just three weeks after the company first launched the robotaxi service, and also comes with an increase to the flat fare for each ride.
Tesla first launched their robotaxi service in Austin on June 22, debuting a fleet of between 10-20 Model Y vehicles. Initially the vehicles covered a service area in south Austin, smaller than Waymo’s service area in the city. As part of the service’s launch, Tesla also set the flat fare of $4.20 for every ride, no matter how long or far the ride was for.
After announcing the service area would expand over the weekend, Tesla waited until the last minute to do so, releasing a map with an enlarged service area late on Sunday night.
According to the new service area map in the mobile app, the geofence now covers downtown, the University of Texas, and areas north of downtown. Based on estimates, the expansion effectively doubled the previous operational footprint and now appears larger than Waymo’s service area.
The shape, intentionally cheeky, follows Elon Musk’s penchant for humour. Tesla’s Robotaxi X account described the zone as “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.”
Along with the service area expansion, the flat fare has been increased to $6.90, an increase of 64%, but another nod to Musk’s sense of humour.
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger pic.twitter.com/t7grvsIJKg
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) July 14, 2025
While the service area has now expanded, it appears as though the fleet remains limited to 10 to 20 Model Y vehicles equipped with special FSD software and shadowed by on-board “safety monitors”—Tesla staff ready to take control if needed. Riders hail trips via the Tesla app, served in a single fare zone ranging from early morning to midnight.
Along with the expansion, Tesla also updated the robotaxi app to now allow riders to edit their destination after booking. Additionally, the app will now provide walking directions to the pickup and final destination.
Musk’s announcement last week also mentioned that the company plans to expand their robotaxi service to the Bay Area within the next 2-3 months, pending regulatory approval. Additionally, the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) confirmed that Tesla began the certification process on June 26 for both supervised and fully autonomous vehicle operations. According to an ADOT spokesperson, a decision is anticipated by the end of the month.
