Tesla's self-driving Cybercab spotted in Park City

A gold Tesla Cybercab test vehicle travels through the intersection of Bonanza Drive and Deer Valley Drive in Park City on Friday, Sept. 11. Photo: Brian Helsper

Tesla's purpose-built robotaxi was seen Friday at Bonanza Drive and Deer Valley Drive, one of the first sightings in the Park City area as test vehicles appear along the Wasatch Front.

PARK CITY, Utah — A gold Tesla Cybercab, the automaker’s purpose-built robotaxi, was photographed Friday at the intersection of Bonanza Drive and Deer Valley Drive in Park City, Utah, marking one of the first sightings of the vehicle in the Park City area.

Is this a real person driving or a mannequin?

A driver is visible behind the wheel of the Tesla Cybercab spotted in Park City on Friday, Sept. 11. Photo: Brian Helsper

The two-seat vehicle, which Tesla began producing in April and launched into paid service in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 3, is designed to operate without a steering wheel or pedals. The version Tesla is testing on public roads across the country is different. The company has been testing the robotaxi with human drivers and traditional controls in multiple markets across the U.S., and photos published by Electrek last week show the test units fitted with a Cybertruck steering wheel mounted on a temporary rig. A driver was visible in the vehicle photographed Friday in Park City.

Several other sightings have occurred recently along the Wasatch Front. A Cybercab was photographed in American Fork on Aug. 24, and a community sighting tracker has logged 14 reports in the Salt Lake City area since early August.

Tesla does not operate its Robotaxi ride-hailing service in Utah. The company’s autonomous operations are limited to Texas, the San Francisco Bay Area, Arizona, Nevada and Florida, where it has obtained state approvals. Utah law does not require a special permit for autonomous vehicle testing. House Bill 101, made it legal for autonomous vehicles to operate on public roads throughout the state under a self-certification framework, and testers must certify to the state that their vehicles comply with all applicable rules of the road.

The sighting comes as Utah leaders eye autonomous vehicles for the 2034 Winter Games. During the 2026 legislative session, Rep. Matt MacPherson, R-Salt Lake County, requested $10 million for a UDOT pilot program to lease robotaxis, telling KUTV he envisions hundreds or even thousands of self-driving taxis and buses on Utah roads by the Olympics.

The federal government is scrutinizing the vehicle’s design. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a review this month into how Tesla self-certified the Cybercab, which lacks a steering wheel, pedals and mirrors, as compliant with federal motor vehicle safety standards.