Construction was completed on May 14 on the second of two vehicular tunnels that make up Elon Musk’s innovative underground transportation system located beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center campus, symbolizing the strength and resiliency of the destination.
The boring machine broke through the concrete wall near the 1.4 million square foot West Hall convention center expansion, which is currently more than 80 percent complete, signaling the completion of excavation for the two one-way tunnels known as the Convention Center Loop. The West Hall expansion and Convention Center Loop are scheduled to debut to the public in January 2021 and are part of the destination’s investment in bringing fun and groundbreaking transportation solutions to the meetings and conventions industry.
“This milestone not only helps usher in the future of transportation in Las Vegas, but it signals the destination’s ability to push through during trying times and continue to meet the evolving needs of our visitors,” says Steve Hill, LVCVA CEO and president. “Las Vegas continues to break through boundaries, and we look forward to offering this first-of-its-kind transportation solution to our convention attendees.”
The first commercial endeavor for Musk’s company, the $52.5 million project will allow convention attendees to be whisked across the 200-acre campus in under two minutes, free of charge, in all-electric Tesla vehicles. Construction is already underway on all three passenger stations in the system.
Construction on the project has moved swiftly. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority moved from board approval to completing the excavation of both tunnels (two 4,500 ft. journeys) in less than one year, proving that Las Vegas embraces new ideas and quickly executes them to meet the evolving needs of visitors.
The underground transportation system’s three passenger stations connect the existing 3.2 million square-foot convention center to the $980 million West Hall expansion. For more info, visit www.vegasmeansbusiness.com.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is charged with marketing Southern Nevada as a tourism and convention destination worldwide and with operating the LVCC. With nearly 150,000 hotel rooms in Las Vegas alone and more than 11 million square feet of meeting and exhibit space citywide, the LVCVA’s mission centers on attracting leisure and business visitors to the area. For more info, visit www.lvcva.com or www.visitlasvegas.com.
