Vegas Loop faces numerous trespassers and struggles to meet expectations

[Jack Aylmer]

ELON MUSK’S HIGHLY ANTICIPATED VEGAS LOOP WAS PITCHED AS A FUTURISTIC TRANSIT SYSTEM — AN UNDERGROUND NETWORK OF HIGH-SPEED TUNNELS WHERE AUTONOMOUS TESLAS WOULD ZIP THROUGH THE CITY, OFFERING A SLEEK, EFFICIENT SOLUTION TO LAS VEGAS’S NOTORIOUS TRAFFIC. HOWEVER, SINCE ITS LAUNCH IN 2021, THE SYSTEM HAS FALLEN FAR SHORT.

THE 2.4 MILE SYSTEM BENEATH THE LAS VEGAS CONVENTION CENTER HAS FACED NUMEROUS OPERATION AND SECURITY CHALLENGES. AND A FAIR AMOUNT OF TRESPASSERS.

A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUEST BY FORTUNE UNCOVERED AT LEAST 67 INCIDENTS OF TRESPASSING AND 22 CASES OF ‘UNAUTHORIZED VEHICLES’ MISTAKENLY ENTERING THE TUNNELS — RAISING DOUBTS ABOUT WHETHER THE LOOP WILL EVER MEET ITS LOFTY EXPECTATIONS.

SOME INCIDENTS WERE MINOR—SUCH AS A SKATEBOARDER SNEAKING IN OR TWO PEOPLE FOUND SLEEPING AT A STATION—WHILE OTHERS, LIKE VEHICLES ACCIDENTALLY FOLLOWING TESLAS INTO RESTRICTED AREAS, RAISED MORE SERIOUS CONCERNS. SECURITY STAFF HANDLED THESE BREACHES, BUT NONE WERE REPORTED TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

DESPITE THESE SETBACKS, LAS VEGAS OFFICIALS HAVE APPROVED A MAJOR EXPANSION, BETTING ON MUSK’S VISION TO EVENTUALLY SUCCEED.

SINCE ITS DEBUT, THE LOOP HAS TRANSPORTED OVER 2 MILLION PASSENGERS, THOUGH IT REMAINS LIMITED TO CONVENTION ATTENDEES RATHER THAN THE GENERAL PUBLIC. WHILE THE NEON-LIT TUNNELS HAVE DRAWN PUBLIC CURIOSITY, THE SYSTEM’S PRACTICAL IMPACT ON REDUCING LAS VEGAS’S TRAFFIC REMAINS MINIMAL.

ORIGINALLY PART OF MUSK’S GRAND “HYPERLOOP” CONCEPT, WHERE PODS WOULD TRAVEL AT HIGH SPEEDS THROUGH LOW-PRESSURE TUBES, THE VEGAS LOOP HAS EVOLVED INTO SOMETHING MUCH MORE CONVENTIONAL. ORDINARY TESLAS, DRIVEN BY HUMANS, CRAWL THROUGH THE TUNNELS — FAR FROM THE AUTONOMOUS, HIGH-SPEED TRANSPORT THAT MANY HAD ANTICIPATED.

THE CONSTRUCTION PHASE ALSO RAISED SAFETY CONCERNS. RECORDS SHOW THAT THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION DOCUMENTED 36 INJURIES OVER A SIX-MONTH PERIOD, INCLUDING HEAT EXHAUSTION AND CHEMICAL BURNS. IN ONE INSTANCE, WORKERS ACCIDENTALLY DUG TOO CLOSE TO A SUPPORT PILLAR FOR THE LAS VEGAS MONORAIL, FORCING A TEMPORARY SHUTDOWN TO ASSESS THE DAMAGE.

LOCAL OFFICIALS — HOWEVER — REMAIN COMMITTED TO MUSK’S VISION. CLARK COUNTY HAS APPROVED A 65-MILE EXPANSION OF THE LOOP, WHICH WILL ADD 69 PASSENGER STATIONS ACROSS LAS VEGAS, INCLUDING A ROUTE TO THE AIRPORT.

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