LAS VEGAS — The Boring Company's Vegas Loop has now carried more than 7 million passengers, the tunnel transit system's latest ridership milestone as new stations keep coming online beneath the Las Vegas Strip.
The figure builds on momentum the system has carried since it passed 5 million rides earlier this month, underscoring how quickly demand has grown as the network expands.
A Growing Underground Network
The Vegas Loop ferries riders in Tesla vehicles through a web of tunnels linking the convention center, casinos, hotels and — increasingly — the wider city. Trips that can take 30 minutes in Strip traffic are reduced to a couple of minutes underground, a contrast that has made the system a favorite with conventioneers and tourists alike.
The company has been adding stations at a steady clip, including the recently opened Resorts World station. Clark County and Las Vegas officials have approved a long pipeline of additional stops, putting the eventual network on track for dozens of stations spanning the metro area.
Faster Tunnels, Lower Costs
Behind the ridership numbers is a steady drumbeat of engineering progress. The company's newest Prufrock boring machines tunnel far faster than earlier models, driving down the cost per mile and letting crews extend the network more quickly. Each efficiency gain makes the economics of underground transit more attractive to the cities now courting the company.
That track record in Las Vegas has become the company's calling card as it pitches Loop systems in other U.S. cities and abroad, from Nashville to the Middle East. Officials who were once skeptical of tunnel transit have increasingly pointed to the Vegas Loop's ridership as evidence the model works.
Building Toward a City-Wide System
Company leaders describe the Vegas Loop as a proof of concept for a new kind of urban mobility — one that moves people quickly, quietly and without weather delays. As more stations open, ridership is expected to keep climbing. Project details are posted on The Boring Company's official site.
The long-term vision is a dense network reaching the airport, residential neighborhoods and entertainment districts, so a rider can step into a station almost anywhere in the city and pop up minutes later across town. With 7 million rides logged and the buildout accelerating, Las Vegas is fast becoming the showcase for Musk's vision of turning traffic-choked surface streets into free-flowing tunnels below.
