The Vegas Loop – underground Tesla tunnels being built in Las Vegas by Elon Musk’s Boring Co. – can be expanded by 25 miles with 18 more stations.
The Clark County Commissioners approved the expansion May 3 for the system, which currently extends 2.2 miles and has five stations operating. The original plan of 29 miles and 51 stations had already been approved for building the system under the Las Vegas Strip and into downtown Las Vegas.
The expansion approved May 3 enables the tunnels to reach more casinos, resorts and shopping areas.
The Loop, however, still has a long way to go to reach its original plan, much less the expansion recently approved.
The first tunnels opened in 2021 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The Loop was extended beyond the convention center to Resorts World last year, its first stop on the future Vegas Loop.
The company reports that it has surpassed 1 million passengers and had a peak day of 32,000 riders. It envisions carrying 57,000 passengers a day in the Vegas Loop.
The system is being built at no cost to the county or the city. Boring is covering the cost of the system and is negotiating with property owners on funding the stations. It will charge fares to ride in battery-powered Teslas in the tunnels, which are 40 feet or so underground.
Sample travel times and fares are as follows, according to the Boring Co.:
The company’s lawyer, Stephanie Allen, told the commissioners a request for even further expansion would come later to eventually expand the system beyond the tourist areas and into Las Vegas Valley. The company has also proposed a tunnel system between Las Vegas and Los Angeles and using autonomous vehicles able to travel up to 150 mph.
One of the stated goals of the company is to “solve the problem of soul-destroying traffic.”