Nashville Announces Partnership with The Boring Company to Ease Traffic Congestion to Airport
The city of Nashville has announced a partnership with Elon Musk’s The Boring Company to address the growing issue of traffic congestion to the airport. This initiative, called the “Music City Loop,” is fully privately funded and will not cost Tennessee taxpayers anything.
Governor Bill Lee revealed that the project is set to be completed within two years, with construction beginning immediately after the approval process. The first phase is expected to open next year, offering a faster alternative to the current 20-minute drive from downtown Nashville to the airport. The trip through the tunnel system is estimated to take only eight to 10 minutes.
This is not the first time Elon Musk has made promises to address traffic congestion in major cities. However, many of his previous projects have not come to fruition. One of the successful projects by The Boring Company is the underground tunnel system in Las Vegas, where Tesla cars transport people around the city’s convention center.
During the announcement, there was some surprise at the proposed timeline for the project, with CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, Doug Kreulen, jokingly commenting on the speed of the project. The Boring Company’s president, Steve Davis, explained that Nashville was chosen as the location for the project because it had to be useful and welcomed by the community.
The event was also attended by Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, although Musk was not mentioned and did not promote the announcement on his social media platform, X. Musk’s other company, xAI, has invested in Tennessee by setting up supercomputer campuses in Memphis.
The Boring Company has faced challenges and setbacks since Musk first announced his intention to address traffic congestion in 2016. While a test tunnel was completed in Los Angeles in 2018, the company’s ultimate vision of a low-pressure tube for high-speed travel, known as the hyperloop, remains a concept with no specific plans or projects.
The Boring Company has also faced difficulties in expanding outside of Las Vegas. Despite multiple project announcements, many have not progressed past the initial fanfare. Projects in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Baltimore have been quietly dropped, while the Fort Lauderdale project has been put on hold.
In 2021, The Boring Company completed five more stations in Las Vegas, bringing the total to eight. The company has received approval for a total of 68 miles of tunnel and 104 stations in Clark County and the City of Las Vegas.
While Musk’s original vision for his company has evolved, with the current focus on building tunnels for regular electric vehicles, the promise of a futuristic hyperloop remains elusive. Despite the challenges and setbacks, Musk’s company continues to work towards its goal of providing efficient transportation solutions for cities around the world.