Elon Musk has revealed that "Loop"—the high-speed underground transportation system—is nearly completed and will soon offer free demos to the public.
This week, via Instagram, Musk shared a time-lapse video to his 7.4 million followers showing the ongoing work under Los Angeles that is being carried out by his firm, The Boring Company, first established in 2016 to explore the future of tunneling.
On paper, it plans to offer a new high-speed transport route serving pedestrians and cyclists at a price "comparable to or lower" than current commuter fares in the U.S. It has been envisioned as a taxi-like system based on "autonomous electric skates traveling at 125-150 miles per hour." Each vehicle will carry up to 16 passengers and, based on the proof-of-concept, they would be able to travel from downtown Washington, D.C. to downtown Baltimore in approximately 15 minutes.
"First Boring Company tunnel under L.A. almost done!" Musk wrote on Instagram, where he routinely updates fans on developments. "Pending final regulatory approvals, we will be offering free rides to the public in a few months. Super huge thanks to everyone that helped with this project. Strong support from public, elected officials & regulators is critical to success. Once fully operational (demo system rides will be free) the system will always give priority to pods for pedestrians and cyclists for less than the cost of a bus ticket."
Currently, there are multiple projects in the pipeline. While initial testing has already been completed at a Space X location in Hawthorne, California, last year, additional schemes are in place for Loop tunnels on the East Coast and Chicago. It is currently working with regulators and government bodies to finalize proposals. In L.A., Musk said it would consist of a 2.7-mile proof-of-process tunnel running through the City of Los Angeles and Culver City.
In April this year, as reported by Electrek, The Boring Company raised $112.5 million for its infrastructure proposals—which also include Hyperloop, a seperate high-speed transport system that Musk has said will be "faster than jetliner."
Over 90 percent of the investment capital reportedly came from the founder himself. On Twitter this week, Musk revealed that work had already started on a Loop route that would travel from Washington D.C. to New York. A Hyperloop trip from D.C. to New York—which would theoretically make use of the same Loop tunnels—would take under 30 minutes, The Boring Company claims on its website.
Sending cars into space on the tip of a rocket and selling branded flamethrowers, Musk clearly has a taste for the eccentric. Still, you can't accuse him of being boring.
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Jason Murdock is a staff reporter for Newsweek.
Based in London, Murdock previously covered cybersecurity for the International Business Times UK ... Read more
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