Elon Musk has a grand idea for tunnels—which, contrary to what you might read elsewhere, is far sillier than Tesla or SpaceX—and though he may think a futuristic tunneling system will reduce traffic, it almost certainly won’t. But Musk’s Boring Company has a new update to show off: an elevator. Check it.
So Musk wants the cars to drop down in an elevator and zip around at up to 124 mph in super-fast tunnels in weird-looking trays of sorts. First, the car needs to be able to drop into the earth below.
If I’m taking the idea of this serious—and, honestly, I think a car-centric tunnel of the future has far less of a chance of becoming reality than a “verbally-approved by the government” Hyperloop—I suppose it at least looks efficient.
The Boring Company’s a Musk side-project, and there’s not much to it, according to what the Tesla CEO said at an April TED Talk, as it’s comprised of “basically interns and people doing it part time.”
“We bought some second-hand machinery,” he said. “It’s kind of puttering along, but it’s making good progress.”
The elevator’s quicker than I’d expect; no one’s going to be eating food or having a sip of coffee during the descent.
If this really is the work of a bunch of part-time workers and interns, then, I guess, kudos. Well done. I still don’t think this’ll resolve congestion.