The task for Elon Musk’s Boring Company engineers was simple – to figure out a way to avoid the ubiquitous traffic jams in crowded cities. There were no limits to the imagination, and soon more and more detailed plans began to emerge for what Musek’s transport revolution would look like. They promised glass transport capsules moving tunnels at high speed.
However, as the first part of the tunnel becomes operational, traffic experts are increasingly questioning the project. The ammunition gives them the latest visualizations that show how the tunnels move Tesla electric cars. Critics now point out, among other things, that the newly published drawings reveal problems that the metro has long since solved. This is, for example, the inefficient use of space or the absence of barrier-free access. “So far, it looks like a seminar paper. I don’t think these sketches were supposed to explain how the whole system will work, “said urban planner Christof Spieler about the newly published information, noting that more detailed and sophisticated drawings will soon appear.
Spieler also warns that if the system were in line with published proposals, it could collapse as cars enter and exit tunnels.
Transportation expert Gerry Tierney went even further in criticizing the project. “This is not a transport system, it is a system for driving underground,” says Tierney ironically, according to which the network of transport tunnels is, in practice, comically inefficient.
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However, the Boring Company continues its plans. On Tuesday, the planning commission in Las Vegas received approval for the construction of a part of the tunnel, including the operation of the city’s transport service, and it will be approved by the city council next month.
The technology company has previously informed that the tunnel complex can accommodate up to four thousand cars per hour. In terms of passengers, this is 16 thousand, compared to 10 to 25 thousand in ordinary public transport. However, if the six-seater Model X ran through the tunnel instead of the Tesla model 3 electric car, the capacity could increase to 24,000, Boring Company calculates.
The Las Vegas tunnel complex, also known as the Loop, is more like a network of expressways than a subway. In the future, it should run across the entire city and have a total of 50 stations. The main advantage is that cars have to be driven continuously at a speed of about 250 kilometers per hour. The first tunnel, one mile long, is due to open in the spring of 2021.
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