Boring, Owned By Elon Musk, Gets Approval To Expand Tunnel Transport Network In Las Vegas

The tunnels built by the Boring Company will connect many places in Las Vegas. (photo: twitter @boringcompany)

JAKARTA - Elon Musk's Boring Company has received unanimous approval to expand its tunnel system under downtown Las Vegas. The expansion will add stops at landmarks such as the Stratosphere and Fremont Street, allowing customers to hop on a Tesla and travel from one part of the city to another.

The tunnel network, called the Vegas Loop, is supposed to span 29 miles and have 51 stops when it's finished. But for now, only the 1.7-mile tunnel runs beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), turning what should have been a 25-minute walk across the convention center into a two-minute ride.

The system uses human-controlled Model X and Y vehicles to transport passengers, despite Musk's earlier statements about using sleds to carry cars through tunnels.

This year's CES attendees got to try out the tunnel under the LVCC for themselves, and some riders weren't too impressed. While reportedly less congested than walking on convention center floors, motorists say they experience traffic reserve in the tunnel, which holds a maximum of 70 cars at a time. The system carries between 15,000 and 17,000 passengers during each CES day.

This latest expansion brings The Boring Company closer to its goal of building a transportation system that reaches the most popular destinations in Las Vegas.

“Thanks to the whole team at City of Last Vegas!” The Boring Company wrote on Twitter in response to the city's approval. “Great discussion today, and TBC is excited to build a safe, comfortable and awesome transportation system in the City.”

The Verge reported last October that The Boring Company received approval to dig beneath the Las Vegas Strip, connecting passengers to hotels, casinos, and McCarran International Airport. The Boring Company started digging under the hotspot earlier this year, as shown in its progress video on Twitter.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Steve Hill, President, and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor Authority expect the tunnel system under the Strip to begin serving customers in 2023. Hill said the section connecting LVCC and Resorts World should be operational by the end of this year.