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The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site takes shape ahead of Dec 18 tunnel opening
The Boring Company continues to make progress on the garage elevator prototype in its Prairie Avenue work site, located roughly at the halfway point of the tunneling startup’s 2-mile test tunnel in Hawthorne, CA. As the days trickle down towards the test tunnel’s unveiling on December 18, The Boring Co. appears to be digging deep in order to ensure that its projects in the area are making good progress.
On the site of the tunneling startup’s garage-elevator prototype, work continued despite last week’s rains. Teslarati photographer Pauline Acalin was in the area last Thursday, and she was able to snap some pictures of workers near the site. Returning to the elevator’s location this Monday, it was evident that work progressed, as evidenced by the disappearance of a massive structure previously set up beside the garage-elevator’s pit.
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- A structure believed to be an elevator shaft was built beside the opening of the Prairie Ave. garage-elevator site. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- A structure believed to be an elevator shaft was built beside the opening of the Prairie Ave. garage-elevator site. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/10/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
A massive structure believed to be an elevator shaft is believed to have been installed in the garage-elevator as of 12/10/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
Images taken near the end of November showed a massive structure being set up by The Boring Company beside the pit where it extracted the segments of Godot, its first tunnel boring machine. While the Boring Company did not identify or confirm the purpose of the structure, its size and height suggested that it was a shaft for the underground elevator being built on the site, where vehicles will be lifted out from the test tunnel.
Considering that the elevator shaft was nowhere to be seen as of Monday, it appears safe to assume that the structure has already been installed in the elevator itself. This bodes well for the project, as the structure is a key component to the Boring Company’s plans in the area. The garage-elevator, after all, is a bit different from the tunneling startup’s other projects, such the Hawthorne tunnel or the Dugout Loop, in the way that it would not be opened to the public even when it gets completed.
Instead, the structure would be used strictly for testing purposes only, with vehicles being moved from the test tunnel into the elevator, before being lifted onto the street. In a statement to Mercury News last September, Boring Company representative Jane Labanowski described the garage-elevator as an “important part of the longer-term vision the company is trying to build.” If the garage-elevator works as intended, it is not difficult to imagine The Boring Company rolling out the concept to its future stations, particularly those located near or even within residential areas.
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/06/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/10/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
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- The Boring Company’s garage-elevator site as of 12/10/2018. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
Work continues on the site of The Boring Company’s garage-elevator concept. (Credit: Pauline Acalin)
Similar to The Boring Company’s other projects, the vehicles that would be transported from the SpaceX headquarters to the elevator will be traveling through the startup’s electric skates. These skates use Hyperloop technology, and are expected to facilitate high-speed transportation from the tunnels to the garage-elevator.
The Boring Company initially announced that it would hold an opening party for its Hawthorne test tunnel on December 10, with test rides in the system being offered to the public for free the following day. In a recent announcement, though, Elon Musk stated that the test tunnel’s opening event is being moved to December 18 instead. Musk did not give a specific reason behind the delay, though considering the work still being done on some Boring Company projects like the Prairie Avenue elevator, there is a good chance that the tunneling startup is opting to refine some of its projects further before unveiling them to the public.
Tesla has extended its Bay Area ride-hailing service to include pickups and drop-offs at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The update, shared via the company’s official channels on July 21, allows users in the region to request rides directly to and from one of California’s busiest airports.
The expansion builds on Tesla’s secured limousine permit for SFO operations. Public records show the permit became effective March 20, 2026, and remains active through January 31, 2027. Tesla vehicles operating the service now display authorized limousine permits issued by the City and County of San Francisco.
Our Bay Area rideshare service now goes to SFO ✈️
— Tesla AI (@Tesla_AI) July 21, 2026
Tesla’s ride-hailing program in California relies on Model Y vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving (Supervised) technology. Human safety drivers remain present in compliance with state regulations, distinguishing the service from fully driverless operations.
The Bay Area geofence covers a broad area spanning north of San Francisco to south of San Jose, offering extensive connectivity across the region.
UPDATE: Elon Musk reveals why Tesla didn’t say ‘Robotaxi’ upon California launch
This SFO addition follows earlier progress at other Bay Area airports. Tesla previously expanded service to San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC) in late 2025. The company had engaged with SFO, SJC, and Oakland International Airport officials as early as September 2025 to secure necessary approvals for passenger transport.
The service provides a new option for travelers seeking electric, app-based transportation integrated with Tesla’s ecosystem. Rides are booked through Tesla’s dedicated ride-hailing application, which handles matching, routing, and payments. Pricing follows standard ride-hailing models, with potential adjustments based on distance, time, and demand.
Tesla’s California ride-hailing program launched in July 2025 with an initial invite-only rollout in the Bay Area. It started alongside operations in Austin, Texas, marking the company’s second major U.S. market.
The Bay Area remains a primary focus in California, with service centered on high-demand corridors connecting residential, commercial, and now major transportation hubs. This latest airport integration represents a practical step in Tesla’s broader mobility ambitions within the state.
Tesla has officially revealed its 2026 Summer Update, which comes with a variety of crazy new features, including Navigation fixes that owners have been wanting for months.
Tesla routinely releases a larger update with the Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter updates, where it ships a variety of new features, bug fixes, and other additions to customer cars.
The 2026 Spring Update featured things like “Hey Grok” voice assistance, a redesigned self-driving app, Unreal Engine visual upgrades, and more.
🚨 TESLA’S SUMMER UPDATE FOR 2026 IS HERE:
Featuring:
✅ Self-Driving Stats in Mobile App
✅ Caraoke with Scoring
✅ Automatic Navigation
✅ Preferred Routes
✅ Set Arrival Energy from Mobile App
✅ Send Custom Wraps from Mobile App
✅ Rear Display Lock
✅ Other Improvements
🔌… https://t.co/C9IW3egEhH— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 21, 2026
Tesla’s Summer Release has about ten new features; we’ll show you each and detail them below:
New Grok Voice Commands
“Grok can now make phone calls, search and play music, adjust climate, open the glovebox, and answer questions about your Tesla.”
Self-Driving Stats in Mobile App
“View and share self-driving stats from the mobile app.”
Caraoke With Scoring
“Caraoke now scores your singing while in Park. High scores are saved to your Tesla profile.”
Automatic Navigation
“Automatic Navigation now adapts to your routine.
In addition to Home, Work, and upcoming calendar events, your vehicle can now suggest and route to places you visit regularly – like a school drop-off on the way to work, or the gym on the way home.”
Preferred Routes
“For a more personalized experience, navigation now prioritizes routes that you’ve taken before”
Set Arrival Energy from Mobile App
“Set your desired Arrival Energy from your phone.”
Send Custom Wraps from Mobile App
“Skip the USB drive and upload a custom wrap of your car from the mobile app. Instructions for creating a custom wrap here: https://github.com/teslamotors/custom-wraps.”
Rear Display Lock
“Kids can watch content on the rear screen, but only the front row can control it through the rear screen app.”
Other Improvements
- Find Superchargers by name when searching for a destination
- Add Apple Music songs to queue from search and artist page
- Set your preferred zoom level for the Self-Driving visualization
- Intro animations for new Model 3 and Y
Tesla’s reason for Starlink integration on Cybercab might surprise you, as the company’s Head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, finally shed some light on the reason they are putting a satellite internet terminal on its ride-hailing-geared vehicle.
On Monday, Tesla officially confirmed that it would integrate Starlink V5 terminals into Cybercab vehicles, something many Tesla fans had figured the company would do, as the vehicle is primarily geared toward giving rides without any passenger intervention.
Starlink V5 directly integrated in Cybercab pic.twitter.com/FxzTtzjB6I
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 20, 2026
The ability to access the internet would allow riders to work or play in the car with their devices. It seemed like a more-than-reasonable feature to add to the Cybercab, which made its way off the production lines for the first time earlier this year.
Tesla reveals first vehicle model to receive Starlink integration
However, the move is not for the rider, as Elluswamy confirmed on Monday night. Instead, it’s actually for Tesla to be able to have a constant connection to the cars in the Robotaxi fleet so it can troubleshoot issues, contact riders, or resolve other issues.
Elluswamy said:
“It is still not required for safe operation of the vehicle. Connectivity is primarily meant for navigation, customer service and, in general, fleet management.”
It is still not required for safe operation of the vehicle. Connectivity is primarily meant for navigation, customer service and, in general, fleet management.
— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) July 20, 2026
Many initially assumed the option of constant connectivity would be enabled on the Cybercab for passenger entertainment or work. With the Cybercab, passengers won’t be doing anything but enjoying the ride, so it seemed more than logical that they would be hanging out with Starlink internet access as an amenity.
However, Tesla’s primary concern with Robotaxi is safety, and nailing these first unsupervised rides is a crucial step to setting a good narrative on how effective driverless transportation can be.
Being able to get in touch with passengers or a vehicle if something is wrong is a crucial part of the overall experience, and preventative measures are being taken by Tesla to ensure a smooth process, even in the worst-case.
Tesla expands ridesharing service in California to new hotspot
Tesla reveals 2026 Summer Update with crazy fixes to Nav and more
