Blog Boring Company Opens Vegas Loop

The Boring Company’s people-moving “Loop” be beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center started carrying passengers this week.

The $52.5 million tunnel is filled with Tesla vehicles that carry passengers around the 1.7-mile stretch.

The construction took about 18 months and was finished about two months ago. The system is ten-times faster than walking around the convention center.

“We’re grateful to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and all local stakeholders for providing us the opportunity to construct our first commercial project in one of the world’s most dynamic destinations,” Boring Co. President Steve Davis said in a statement reported by The Los Angeles Business Journal. “We are proud to have developed and delivered an exciting transportation solution to the Las Vegas Convention Center.”

The Loop currently consists of three passenger stations.  Passengers can travel the entire route in about two minutes at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour. The company ultimately plans to use a fleet of 62 Tesla vehicles that can carry up to 4,400 people per hour.

 

[Knightshade]

Dec 2016 : "Traffic is driving me nuts" Tweeet. TBC founded
Feb 2017 : Elon tells Bloomberg they have a TBM they are reverse engineering (Nannie)
April 2017 : TED 2017 talk including tunnels and the planned improvements to TBM
May 2017 : TBM roadmap Godot (conventional), Line-Storm (hybrid) , Prufrock (new)
June 2017 : Godot TBM is digging
2018: TBC spun off from SpaceX
2019-2021: Godot digs LVCC tunnel system
Feb 2022: Prufrock completes Resorts extention to Vegas Loop
Oct 2022: Prufrock II is digging

I appreciate Mongos clarification Godot was used initially in Vegas as well- though from what I'm finding it was reported both ways, with some sources mentioning Prufrock took over there before they moved on to the loop part of the project-- for example:

Elon Musk’s Boring Company Completes First Mile-Long Vegas Tunnel

The mile-long tunnel goes from one end of the Las Vegas Convention Center to the other.

www.autoweek.com

That's from Apr '21 mentioning Prufrock replacing Godot, the resorts world tunnel didn't start until Jan 2022.... but with more...digging... Mongos info appears more accurate and unlike some folks I'm always happy to be made less wrong with better info from others

 

[mongo]

I appreciate Mongos clarification Godot was used initially in Vegas as well- though from what I'm finding it was reported both ways, with some sources mentioning Prufrock took over there before they moved on to the loop part of the project-- for example:

Elon Musk’s Boring Company Completes First Mile-Long Vegas Tunnel

The mile-long tunnel goes from one end of the Las Vegas Convention Center to the other.

www.autoweek.com

That's from Apr '21 mentioning Prufrock replacing Godot, the resorts world tunnel didn't start until Jan 2022.... but with more...digging... Mongos info appears more accurate and unlike some folks I'm always happy to be made less wrong with better info from others

Correction to my timeline:
May 2020 LVCC tunneling was completed (not in 2021).
Addition:
Feb 2020: Prufrock is alive testing tweet from TBC

Maybe someday I'll become organized enough to log data points as they happen (nah...)

Prufrock was the first from scratch (ish?, may use some off the shelf/ standard parts) design with porpoise launch and exit capability along with the tight turn radius needed for Resorts.

I think maybe the Line-Storm version turned into the Godot+ version, wherein they modified the first operational unit rather than building an intermediate variety. Or Line-Storm was engineering use only.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Dec 2016 : "Traffic is driving me nuts" Tweeet. TBC founded
Feb 2017 : Elon tells Bloomberg they have a TBM they are reverse engineering (Nannie)
April 2017 : TED 2017 talk including tunnels and the planned improvements to TBM
May 2017 : TBM roadmap Godot (conventional), Line-Storm (hybrid) , Prufrock (new)
June 2017 : Godot TBM is digging
2018: TBC spun off from SpaceX
2019-2021: Godot digs LVCC tunnel system
Feb 2022: Prufrock completes Resorts extention to Vegas Loop
Oct 2022: Prufrock II is digging

Thank you Mongo.

As for the others, Loop is different from a subway in many different important ways (express system, surface stations, mass produced people carriers, no third rail, much safer stations (no people being pushed to their death onto tracks), ability to fit into existing infrastructure like hotel lobbies). But my take is that people here just want to dump on Loop, so it isn’t worth my time explaining these in any details. So go ahead and dump away.

 

[Just a Reader]

Thank you Mongo.

As for the others, Loop is different from a subway in many different important ways (express system, surface stations, mass produced people carriers, no third rail, much safer stations (no people being pushed to their death onto tracks), ability to fit into existing infrastructure like hotel lobbies). But my take is that people here just want to dump on Loop, so it isn’t worth my time explaining these in any details. So go ahead and dump away.

Sorry, unfortunately you show that your knowledge of modern subway systems is limited.
To take one example: to prevent people from getting pushed in front of trains, there is the option of installing platform screen doors (PSDs) and platform edge doors (PEDs), which are protective glass barriers between the train and the platform. They only open when a train has stopped and close again before it leaves the station. You can find protective doors like this e.g. on London's Jubilee line.

Jubilee Line - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre

es.wikipedia.org

 

[kaffine]

Thank you Mongo.

As for the others, Loop is different from a subway in many different important ways (express system, surface stations, mass produced people carriers, no third rail, much safer stations (no people being pushed to their death onto tracks), ability to fit into existing infrastructure like hotel lobbies). But my take is that people here just want to dump on Loop, so it isn’t worth my time explaining these in any details. So go ahead and dump away.

I've ridden on the loop it sucks. I wanted to like it and was excited to go on it and was let down. Cars suck for mass transport. They need platforms with the ability to walk/roll onto the transport pods. You will not get enough throughput using cars with 3 passengers to make it worth the cost to do city wide transport system. A small section such as the resort corridor in Vegas you might be able to make a profit, but my guess is the only way they wont be bankrupt is because they are getting the resorts to fund the install. The fees they will have to charge the public to do a city wide transport system is not feasible.

If they can get the tunneling costs down and correct the transport pods they may be able to have a huge impact on transportation. I hope they do but think they will end up like Segway. Segway made lots of noise and made lots or promises but in the end not much impact. Sure you still see them but they never caught on and revolutionized personal transport.

My issues with it are easy to fix if they can get the tunneling costs down. I think ultimately they will need larger tunnels maybe not as large as a normal subway tunnel but larger than they use now. I can also see them making tunnels for other utilities and giving up on transportation of people. While speed of the tunneling is important cost will win out in the end.

 

[Cosmacelf]

I've ridden on the loop it sucks. I wanted to like it and was excited to go on it and was let down. Cars suck for mass transport. They need platforms with the ability to walk/roll onto the transport pods. You will not get enough throughput using cars with 3 passengers to make it worth the cost to do city wide transport system. A small section such as the resort corridor in Vegas you might be able to make a profit, but my guess is the only way they wont be bankrupt is because they are getting the resorts to fund the install. The fees they will have to charge the public to do a city wide transport system is not feasible.

If they can get the tunneling costs down and correct the transport pods they may be able to have a huge impact on transportation. I hope they do but think they will end up like Segway. Segway made lots of noise and made lots or promises but in the end not much impact. Sure you still see them but they never caught on and revolutionized personal transport.

My issues with it are easy to fix if they can get the tunneling costs down. I think ultimately they will need larger tunnels maybe not as large as a normal subway tunnel but larger than they use now. I can also see them making tunnels for other utilities and giving up on transportation of people. While speed of the tunneling is important cost will win out in the end.

Every city in the world has a mass transit system consisting of taxis picking people up at hotel lobbies while jockeying for position with private cars loading and unloading. Somehow it all works. Buses manage to be mass transit with tiny little “stations” containing 1-10 people queuing up in each. Somehow it works. People keep trying to compare Loop to subways because I guess both are underground, but that’s pretty silly.

Loop is a taxi substitute. It has many, many “stations” like a bus network, only the stations are right where you need them, at surface level rather than having to go three flights underground on slow escalators. Unlike a bus or subway network, Loop has bypasses underground for each station, so you don’t stop at every station along the way. Unlike a bus or subway network, when you need to go from one “line” to another, you don’t have to disembark, walk for 4 minutes and wait 10 minutes for another subway. Both of these “innovations” dramatically increases system throughput.

Loop will charge more than what a bus or subway costs and less than a taxi. It’ll make money at those rates.

You are dismissive of the “small resort corridor” in Las Vegas, but that stretch is what visitors use and it isn’t particularly small. Loop will dramatically reduce transit times to/from the airport, stadiums, and all the 30 or so hotels and resort destinations. People routinely travel from one resort to another to attend shows and attractions.

If you want to see a truly horrific mass transit system, come down to San Diego where they recently built a huge elevated light rail network that is an urban eyesore and cost billions upon billions and gets very little ridership. That is what Loop is competing against and it isn’t even close in terms of cost and utility.

 

[mongo]

Data from CES

Was our privilege to provide transportation for
@LVCVA
at an amazing
@CES
convention. Fun Loop stats: average ride time < 2 min, average wait time < 10 sec, 94k+ total passengers, 10k+ passengers to/from Resorts World, and average Q4 LVCC Customer Experience Score > 4.9/5.0!

https://twitter.com/x/status/1612634349559742465

 

[mongo]

One million riders

https://twitter.com/x/status/1635669057407160320

 

[LAexpress]

One million riders

https://twitter.com/x/status/1635669057407160320

I tried to ride today and was not able to. The convention this week is so big that “joy riders” are not allowed this week to buy a pass without purchasing a convention pass at $600+. Everyone was nice and everything was organized and hopping. Saw a group get mind blown when their model X doors opened for them. Was told maybe if Saturday is slow I could try again. Buy you ticket on line before heading to it. It states the convention requirements clearly in red when you do that.

 

[Electroman]

I tried to ride today and was not able to. The convention this week is so big that “joy riders” are not allowed this week to buy a pass without purchasing a convention pass at $600+. Everyone was nice and everything was organized and hopping. Saw a group get mind blown when their model X doors opened for them. Was told maybe if Saturday is slow I could try again. Buy you ticket on line before heading to it. It states the convention requirements clearly in red when you do that.

Which convention happening this week? Construction expo?

 

[Buckminster]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1638284068285554693

 

[mongo]

Encore and Westgate single tunnels dug.
Encore took 10 weeks from arrival at empty parking lot. Godot took 10 weeks to setup

https://twitter.com/x/status/1678557789873147905

 

[Cosmacelf]

Are the routes in Orange open, or just dug?

 

[Cosmacelf]

When will Boring get more than one machine in operation?

 

[mongo]

Are the routes in Orange open, or just dug?

Some just dug, i think resorts is open, LVCC definitely is.

 

[mongo]

When will Boring get more than one machine in operation?

Now
Pufrock-1 did Westgate, Prufrock-2 did Encore.

 

[dhanson865]

Worth archiving the full map from time to time, they tend to just quietly replace the current copy, this one is dated 2023-05-03 aka May 03 2023.

 

[dhanson865]

Are the routes in Orange open, or just dug?

4 of the 6 legs are operating cars/stations/paying customers ( or is it 3 of 5)?

only the 2 newest have no traffic.

Here is a crummy 2 second hack job to show active vs new, Green lines have traffic/paying customers. Gold lines are still in progress, not completed.

 

[UkNorthampton]

Any of you good at multitasking?

Prufrock-2 & 3 are still operated internally with a crew and a pilot / operator

You require 1 operator per TBM. However the TBC plan is to control upto 6x Prufrocks via a single control room at the surface

Im being told this will happen next year. Massive cost savings.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1678725142325633025

 

[dhanson865]

New changes / expansion proposed, vote 07/19/2023 on proposal