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Rivian Motorway name change approved by city council despite opposition
The City Council of Bloomington, Illinois approved a motion last night to rename the highway where Rivian’s main manufacturing plant is located to Rivian Motorway. The road, which has parts located in both Bloomington and Normal, is currently named Mitsubishi Motorway after the prior owner of the facility. After some deliberation, the Council voted 7 to 2 to move forward with the requested name change.
Prior to the Bloomington Council’s meeting, the vote on the naming matter was expected to largely be a formality. However, one council member was decidedly against the motion. Donna Boelen, Alderwoman of Ward 2, objected over several concerns focused on the long-term ramifications of the move.
“Is this really in the best interest of the City of Bloomington and the region? It’s an unfortunate precedent that streets have been named after companies, and I would like to see that come to an end,” Boelen commented. “Rivian has two other operational entities, one in California, and one in Michigan… Rivian did not meet its incentive goal last year. They promised 1,000 employees over the next ten years, and that only means 100 per year.”
Along with casting doubts about Rivian’s long-term prospects in Illinois, Boelen further asserted that street names are free advertising that could deter future businesses from setting up shop nearby as there are several vacant lots near Rivian’s facility that could be developed.
Renaming Mitsubishi Motorway would also require local businesses to incur significant expenses, Boelen further claimed, citing one business owner’s quote of $5,000 to update their website and advertising materials with the new street name. This particular point caused a bit of debate among the members, specifically with regard to the amount cited.
“I have a really hard time understanding where a $5,000 total could possibly come from,” one member objected. “I mean, changing a website and changing the line to Rivian from Mitsubishi should take somebody like 5 minutes at the most… I think maybe he should have some serious conversations with his web developer at that point.” Mayor Teri Renner also added a comment about the overall street naming precedent in response to Boelen’s concerns. “It’s pretty common throughout the entire United States to name streets after major investors,” he said. “That is part of what some people think of as pro-business.”
The Town Council for Normal, where Rivian’s facility is actually located, had its own debate about the name change despite its motion ultimately being approved 4-2 in early July. Council member Stan Nord cited concerns about electronic databases adjusting to the temporary nature of businesses in the long term. Other members were not convinced that a problem existed, though, noting that new streets and street name changes were very common across the country.
Rivian specifically requested the name change earlier this year, according to a memo written by Assistant City Manager Eric Hanson to the Normal City Council. “Obviously, it’s not necessarily advantageous for them to bring (potential investors) down Mitsubishi Motorway,” he said. “ A second road for access to Rivian’s factory is also planned for renaming, citing the same reasons – Sakura Lane will be renamed Electric Avenue.
The nascent car maker bought their factory headquarters from Mitsubishi in 2017, and efforts are currently underway to transition to the electrified lineup they have in the works to include the R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV. Interestingly, many of the workers currently involved in Rivian’s changeover process were part of the original Mitsubishi team that opened the factory when it was new.
Rivian must gain one more approval from the McLean County Board before Rivian Motorway is final. Along with the Normal and Bloomington Councils, the Illinois Emergency Telephone Systems Board has also approved the move. The County Board will consider the request later this month.
The City Council’s deliberations in full can be viewed below:
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
