(Reuters) -Tesla has received a permit to operate as a transportation network company in Arizona, a state regulator said on Tuesday, in a step toward expanding the electric vehicle maker’s robotaxi service.
The TNC permit will allow Tesla to run an Uber-like ride-hailing service and charge passengers, but does not let it operate driverless vehicles. Under a self-certification process, Tesla, in September, got a permit from the state to test its autonomous vehicles with a safety driver.
The company has also applied for a permit to test without a driver.
After years of missed promises and several company closures due to high costs, tight regulations and federal investigations, the robotaxi industry has rebounded with Tesla, Alphabet’s Waymo and Amazon’s Zoox speeding up expansion.
Tesla this year launched a robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, with a safety monitor in the front passenger seat. After promising to expand the service to about half the U.S. population by the end of this year, CEO Elon Musk said last month Tesla would operate robotaxis in 8-10 metro areas by that time.
Tesla also runs a chauffeur-style service operated by human drivers in the San Francisco Bay area and has obtained a permit in Nevada to test its autonomous vehicles on public roads.
Tesla, which applied for the Arizona TNC authorization on November 13, met the requirements and received the permit on November 17, the state’s Department of Transportation said in a statement.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Abhirup Roy; Editing by Alan Barona and Bill Berkrot)
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