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.

 

[Buckminster]

I like their use of the word monorail to somehow explain a tunnel...

 

[mongo]

I like their use of the word monorail to somehow explain a tunnel...

It's what the zoning codes have that covers the usage.

 

[Knightshade]

Also there was some weirdness where the monorail had exclusive rights and they had to work around that for TBC purposes- don't QUITE care enough to look the details up again

 

[mongo]

Fore!

https://twitter.com/x/status/1681744560282808320

 

[mongo]

More progress at Westgate

Porpoising:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1726857099794346463

Emerging, tunnel 2 at that location, looks like a laser guide.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1727196708957000042

 

[MichaelP90DL]

Looks like a scene from Spielberg's War of the Worlds.

 

[mongo]

And Prufrock-1 nails the dismount

https://twitter.com/x/status/1730807576139358420

 

[Bet TSLA]

Is there any site that maintains up-to-date and (more) complete information on the Boring Company projects? I'd like to see the current state of the Las Vegas Loop. What's current status on tunnels and stations? What's next? What's the long-term schedule? What TBMs are currently deployed and where are they now? How are the technology improvements going? What are they doing with the waste material?

The Boring Company website is pretty much useless. If the company is serious, I'd expect to see the number of machines deployed doubling every few months, but I don't see anything like that. Nor do I see new projects starting. So why's it so opaque and so dead? Anybody know?

 

[Cosmacelf]

Is there any site that maintains up-to-date and (more) complete information on the Boring Company projects? I'd like to see the current state of the Las Vegas Loop. What's current status on tunnels and stations? What's next? What's the long-term schedule? What TBMs are currently deployed and where are they now? How are the technology improvements going? What are they doing with the waste material?

The Boring Company website is pretty much useless. If the company is serious, I'd expect to see the number of machines deployed doubling every few months, but I don't see anything like that. Nor do I see new projects starting. So why's it so opaque and so dead? Anybody know?

It’s opaque because they aren’t a consumer facing company. Their customers are governments, and in Vegas, casinos. So no need for much of a website.

I suspect they are still working out the kinks of their boring machines. Once they have something they like, they’ll start replicating machines. This thread contains many Vegas route maps, so look here for more info about Vegas. The only other active project I know of is maybe Miami, but that might be stuck in permitting hell.

You realize that projects like this normally have timelines that span decades from project conception through permitting and completion, right?

 

[DarkandStormy]

Elon Musk’s Tunnel Reportedly Oozing With Skin-Burning Chemical Sludge

Sludge Metal Despite a decade of dreaming, Elon Musk has only built one tiny Hyperloop tunnel in Las Vegas — and the people who built it say it's filled with dangerous chemical sludge. As Bloomberg reports, the Boring Company's scarce output, which thus far amounts only to Teslas driven around a...

www.yahoo.com

As Bloomberg reports, the Boring Company's scarce output — which thus far amounts only to driving Teslas around a few miles of neon-lit tunnel underneath Sin City as they ferry convention attendees at no more than 40 miles per hour — has also come with a massive buildup of waste, the consistency of a milkshake, that's said to burn the skin of anyone who comes in contact with it.

 

[mongo]

Elon Musk’s Tunnel Reportedly Oozing With Skin-Burning Chemical Sludge

Sludge Metal Despite a decade of dreaming, Elon Musk has only built one tiny Hyperloop tunnel in Las Vegas — and the people who built it say it's filled with dangerous chemical sludge. As Bloomberg reports, the Boring Company's scarce output, which thus far amounts only to Teslas driven around a...

www.yahoo.com

Wow, the article has a factual error in the first sentence (more like two).
Not sure why accelerants are called out, cement on its own is caustic and can cause burns.
A leading accelerator is calcium chloride. Other common use of this chemical is dust control for dirt roads, deicing roads, and as a food additive.

 

[Knightshade]

Wow, the article has a factual error in the first sentence (more like two).
Not sure why accelerants are called out, cement on its own is caustic and can cause burns.
A leading accelerator is calcium chloride. Other common use of this chemical is dust control for dirt roads, deicing roads, and as a food additive.

What's bizare is when I go to the link, under that story are 2 more....which are different versions of the same story- though the other 2 don't make the mistakes of calling it a hyperloop or claiming there's only a single tunnel- but otherwise are about 95% same content, but different authors.

 

[mongo]

What's bizare is when I go to the link, under that story are 2 more....which are different versions of the same story- though the other 2 don't make the mistakes of calling it a hyperloop or claiming there's only a single tunnel- but otherwise are about 95% same content, but different authors.

If they aren't adding facts...

 

[dsm363]

The part I don't understand is digging these tunnels then having to pay drivers to drive a Tesla through a narrow tunnel. You'd think simply putting a track in the tunnel and having an automated purpose built ~10 passenger carrier would move people faster and with less issues.

 

[mongo]

The part I don't understand is digging these tunnels then having to pay drivers to drive a Tesla through a narrow tunnel. You'd think simply putting a track in the tunnel and having an automated purpose built ~10 passenger carrier would move people faster and with less issues.

Track:

• Costs money
• Requires switches and maintenance
• Prevents asynchonous loading/ unloading at stations
• Inhibits the point to point benefit
• Potentially can't handle the grade changes
• Has worse braking distance in an emergency

Boring is working on a higher capacity vehicle and autonomy is expected eventually.

 

[Cosmacelf]

As usual, Elons companies take the harder initial path for better long term benefit.

 

[mongo]

As usual, Elons companies take the harder initial path for better long term benefit.

I'd argue using Teslas is easier than rail...

 

[Unclepaul]

Tesla also gets lots of exposure to Vegas convention and vacation visitors.
Eventually those cars will be replaced with automatous shuttles. Right now human powered Tesla are getting the job done.

 

[mongo]

Two more routes approved in Las Vegas
h/t Sawyer
Las Vegas Approves Expansion of The Boring Company's Vegas Loop with Two New Lines

https://twitter.com/x/status/1767933935915237757

 

[moa999]

And Prufrock-1 nails the dismount

https://twitter.com/x/status/1730807576139358420

So the Q1 2024 opening of these extensions was missed??