With hopes of providing a robotaxi service in California this year, Tesla has secured its first permit from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to carry passengers, officials confirmed March 20.
The electric vehicle company applied for the transportation charter-party carrier permit, a license usually secured for chauffeur-operated services, in November, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) reported Thursday.
The approval will allow Tesla to own and control a fleet of vehicles and take employees on pre-arranged trips, according to a DMV spokesman.
“Tesla plans to transition to using the permit to transport members of the public on a pre-arranged basis,” DMV spokesman Chris Orrock told The Epoch Times in an email. “Tesla will notify the CPUC when it transitions to transporting members of the public.”…