The Boring Company reportedly completes Las Vegas tunnels ahead of 2021 opening

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With all the coronavirus cancellations and postponements, how about some a project that's still on schedule for a change? The Boring Company, Elon Musk's firm dedicated to tunneling and developing a new kind of transportation, has reportedly completed its Las Vegas tunnels.

The Verge reported Thursday that both tunnels to complete the loop are complete, quoting the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority CEO Steve Hill. The Boring Company finished the first tunnel this past February and started work on the final tunnel shortly after. When complete, the loop will shuttle passengers between different parts of the Las Vegas Convention Center to an expanded west hall. The campus covers 200 acres, so the authority sought an efficient way to move guests around and spent over $50 million for Musk's company to make the loop a reality.

Neither LVCVA nor the Boring Company immediately responded to requests for comment.

According to the report, work will now pivot to three above-ground stations for riders to enter the loop. Two stations will be at either end of the convention center with a third in the middle of the loop.

The tunnel's vehicles will be based on a Tesla Model 3 or Model X and carry passengers at speeds up to 155 mph 40 feet underground. A modified Model 3 will form the basis of a larger shuttle as well. Walking the distance takes roughly 15 minutes, but a ride on the Boring Company's loop should cut that down to about two minutes.

According to Hill, the vehicles will at first feature drivers, but eventually they'll run autonomously thanks to sensors installed within the tunnels. The hope is to have the service totally operational for CES 2021, but the coronavirus pandemic has made the thought of trade shows almost impossible. Should the technology expo drift later into 2021, Hill told the website it'll wait to open the service. When it does open, it'll be totally free to use for conference-goers.