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A look inside Elon Musk's futuristic LA traffic-beating tunnel system
ABC 7 Eyewitness News ^ | April 28, 2017 | Coleen Sullivan

Posted on 04/29/2017 10:12:04 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- He's conquered the streets with electric cars, and he's leading the commercial race to space, but that's not enough for Elon Musk.

Billionaire Musk spoke at a TED Talks conference and gave the first glimpse of the traffic-beating underground tunnels he hopes to create.

The SpaceX and Tesla CEO plans to build the network of tunnels with his latest venture, The Boring Company.

Construction was well underway at the Hawthorne-based business on Friday.

AIR7 HD was overhead as crews worked on the early designs of a tunnel-digging machine with The Boring Company logo.

Here's how it would work: A computer-generated mockup shows a sprawling network of underground tunnels that vehicles can access on elevators positioned near roadsides. Once underground, the silver platforms whisk the cars to their destinations at great speeds.

Musk said a trip from Westwood to Los Angeles International Airport would take about five to six minutes.

The futuristic idea came to Musk back in December, when he got stuck in L.A.'s notorious traffic. He said the tunnel would start across from his desk at SpaceX and stretch to Crenshaw and the 105 Freeway.

While the underground highway is no doubt a distant dream, Musk has a way of pulling off ideas that seem impossible.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; Philosophy; US: California
KEYWORDS: boringcompany; chitchat; congestion; elevators; elonmusk; losangeles; speedlimits; technology; traffic; tunnels; underground
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Videos in original

Also, see Elon Musk's underground roads will have car 'elevators' and no speed limits

Cannot post that article, because it's Wired Magazine.

1 posted on 04/29/2017 10:12:05 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Someone please tell Elon about the San Andreas fault.


2 posted on 04/29/2017 10:18:32 PM PDT by Read Write Repeat
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Lets see, 200k/hr, underground, 7.0 earthquake...

Sounds like a great idea.

That should make for about ten miles of cars all smashed up in about 250 feet where the first accident happens.


3 posted on 04/29/2017 10:21:32 PM PDT by DoughtyOne (Happy days are here again!)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Create a spiderweb of tunnels for high velocity transit underneath a city built over numerous fault lines. What could go wrong?


4 posted on 04/29/2017 10:22:22 PM PDT by jz638
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

How are you going to slow down each individual car so it can exit this tunnel system without disrupting traffic behind it?


5 posted on 04/29/2017 10:49:39 PM PDT by LukeL
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Those platforms that transport the cars look like a vulnerable system for catastrophic failure. At those high speeds, a little vibration will turn parts into scrap metal and human beings flying like spit wads to their death. Any earth quake or a nuke attack will turn the cars into coffins and the tunnels into graves.


6 posted on 04/29/2017 10:53:30 PM PDT by jonrick46 (The Left has a mental illness: A totalitarian psyche.)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Isn’t he worried about things like, flowing water, LaBrae tar pit stuff, oil lakes, and rats?


7 posted on 04/29/2017 10:54:36 PM PDT by blueplum ("...this moment is your moment: it belongs to you " President Donald J. Trump, Jan 20, 2017)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Musk probably shouldn’t be listening to the voices in his head

While Spacex is marginally successful Tesla is not and has major problems


8 posted on 04/29/2017 10:55:45 PM PDT by Nifster (I see puppy dogs in the clouds)
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To: Nifster

Musk is hilarious

Motor Traffic congestion is NOT a technology problem, it’s a pricing problem.

Clever Technology will never solve congestion because any good that is priced at zero ( ie streets ) will
always be overconsumed.

Price streets correctly and congestion will
cease


9 posted on 04/29/2017 11:08:02 PM PDT by vooch (America First)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Why don’t these trillionaires focus on making Star Trek type of transporters.


10 posted on 04/29/2017 11:09:46 PM PDT by Daniel Ramsey (Thank YOU President Trump, finally we can do what America does best, to be the best!)
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To: vooch
The Dems tried to price roads out of reach. That led to "drill now" and anger aimed at the Dems for their artificial inflation of gas prices. That and people noted correctly​ that increased gas prices, no matter how 'good for the Earth' and well intentioned, disproportionately impact and harm lower income Americans.
11 posted on 04/29/2017 11:12:17 PM PDT by Darksheare (Those who support liberal "Republicans" summarily support every action by same.)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Wonder how many billions of our money Musk is using for THIS one.


12 posted on 04/29/2017 11:13:56 PM PDT by JennysCool
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

I must have missed the part where we elected Elon Musk to plan and execute public works and transportation infrastructure.


13 posted on 04/29/2017 11:14:39 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: JennysCool

Yes, he is rather skilled at sucking up taxpayer money.

Expect Musk fanbois to show up and howl over people mentioning that Musk is a tax parasite.


14 posted on 04/29/2017 11:17:15 PM PDT by Darksheare (Those who support liberal "Republicans" summarily support every action by same.)
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To: LukeL

Slow them down?

Heck, just launch them.


15 posted on 04/29/2017 11:19:14 PM PDT by Scrambler Bob (Brought to you from Turtle Island, otherwise known as 'So-Called North America')
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Once underground, the silver platforms whisk the cars to their destinations at great speeds...

Every illustrator for Popular Science Magazine in the 1930's and 40's had visions like this. Sleek streamlined futuristic railcars in modernistic tunnels packed with happy commuters. Same old crap from the so-called big thinkers. Musk will never impact transportation one millionth that Henry Ford did.
16 posted on 04/29/2017 11:28:32 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: JennysCool

And who’s going to stop him when after greasing government wheels, a massive propaganda campaign, wooing investors, and getting laws and zoning ordinances changed to accomodate his project ... he puts up a toll booth? I don’t want this guy anywhere near my roads and highways thank you very much.


17 posted on 04/29/2017 11:37:26 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

How much will Musk bilk taxpayers to create this tunnel network?

If he wants to spend his own money fantastic. More power to him. And if he can improve boring technology WITH HIS MONEY great.

But knowing him and his business plan he will try to get the taxpayers to fund it.


18 posted on 04/29/2017 11:38:59 PM PDT by Organic Panic (Flinging poo is not a valid argument)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Getting claustrophobic just thinking about it....


19 posted on 04/30/2017 12:50:23 AM PDT by Bigg Red (Vacate the chair! Ryan must go.)
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To: Read Write Repeat

He should also watch out for the amber heard fault too.


20 posted on 04/30/2017 12:53:52 AM PDT by Trillian
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