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Elon Musk's Boring Company Finishes First Tunnel for 155mph Vegas Loop:
Last week, Musk's Boring Company finished excavating the first of two tunnels for a new transportation system that will run underneath the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). The second tunnel will run parallel to the first, creating a loop to carry people back and forth in modified Tesla Model 3 and Model X cars.
There will be one station at the convention center's south hall, another between the central and north halls, and a third at the west hall, which is currently under construction. It takes about 15 minutes to walk from one hall to another (more if there are super-cool things like Avatar concept cars to see along the way). According to Musk, the underground cars will move at speeds up to 155 miles per hour, taking people between stations in just one minute.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority awarded a $48.7 million contract to the Boring Company last year; it's the company's first commercial contract, and they're required to test the system for three months before opening it for public use. Their goal is to move a whopping 4,000 vehicles per hour.
It took three months to excavate the first tunnel, with work taking place 40 feet underground. Musk hopes to eventually expand the transit system to other parts of Las Vegas, including the Strip and the airport, and even to have a connecting tunnel running all the way to Los Angeles; LA residents may one day be able to hop over to Vegas for an afternoon (or Vegas residents go catch a glimpse of the ocean for a few hours).
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Monday February 24 2020, @01:22AM (1 child)
155 MPH is roughly a mile every 25 seconds. It's what, maybe 4 miles from one end of the strip to the other? Another 3-4 miles to the airport. Lets be generous and call it all 10 miles. At top speed that's 3-4 minutes end to end. Takes time to speed up and slow down, let alone stopping at stations.
So if you're going from the Luxor to the Stratosphere you might, emphasis on might, hit 155 MPH. But you'll be there for a few seconds, and won't be stopping at, say, Ceasors palace.
Disclaimer: Haven't been to Vegas in over 10 years, hotels may have been replaced, distances may be way off, and I honestly have a better idea of how far it is from San Diego to the strip than from the Vegas airport to the strip.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 24 2020, @02:57AM
Haven't seen numbers for the Model 3 or Model X, but a Tesla Model S can do 0-100mph-0 (~160kph) in a little over 10 seconds -- https://www.motortrend.com/news/the-2017-tesla-model-s-p100d-0-100-0-test/ [motortrend.com]
If you like high-g amusement park rides, this could be a lot of fun. Just make sure to fasten your seat belts and plant your head firmly against the headrest before acceleration starts.