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First Look at a ride inside the Boring Company’s LVCC Loop as testing begins
Elon Musk’s Boring Company performed capacity testing in Las Vegas at its Las Vegas Convention Center Loop yesterday as the Sin City prepares to reopen with no restrictions on June 1st. In preparation for Las Vegas to welcome back travelers, visitors, and residents alike to the downtown area after over a year of quarantine, the Boring Company is preparing for the first days of operation with its newly constructed Vegas Loop, a public transportation option that aims to give travelers efficient express options to travel to and from the city’s most popular hotspots.
A fleet of Model 3, Model Y, and Model X vehicles was on the ground in Las Vegas, and eyewitnesses estimate around 50 Tesla electric vehicles were a part of the testing phase. Additionally, less than 500 people were a part of the tests that aimed to give the Boring Company and the LVCC officials some clarity on how the Loop would run once the city fills back up with people.
Credit: eirunning85 | imgur
One eyewitness, u/adjudicatedmonster on the r/BoringCompany subreddit, gave several details about what they saw while the testing phase was ongoing. One of the most notable parts of the test was the constant loop of vehicles working on merging and coexisting smoothly. This remains to be the most crucial part of the LVCC Loop’s effectiveness because, without smooth and uneventful travel, the Loop will not work efficiently. However, u/adjudicatedmonster said that boarding the vehicles and getting moving went “smoother than expected.” The Model X took the longest to board and get going, while the Model Y was unequivocally the most efficient.
Credit: jacksonjourneys | Instagram
Most cars were filled with three passengers, plus a driver who controlled the vehicle manually through the tunnel. u/adjudicatedmonster said the vehicles traveled around 30 MPH through turns and around 39 MPH on straightaways.
Video thanks to eirunning95 on imgur
The Boring Company also gave out souvenirs, like Boring Company hats and some lucky guests even got to operate Boring Company flamethrowers.
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As Las Vegas prepares to reopen on June 1st, there will be no restrictions on businesses or activities, according to KTNV, an ABC affiliate station in Las Vegas. Life is getting back to normal, and it is expected to be busy, considering the Sin City hasn’t had a normal week of business in over a year. In 2019, Las Vegas recorded over 42 million visitors, a far cry from the only 19 million that made their way to the city last year as the pandemic raged on. For years, public transportation has been a struggle for Vegas visitors. Limited options combined with high prices have made walking around the city a more viable option. However, the LVCC Loop from the Boring Company won’t break the bank, and it will get visitors from Point A to Point B in a fraction of the time. Projections estimate that the Loop will move 8,000 people every hour.
For now, the LVCC Loop will transport passengers across the Convention Center Campus that spans 73 acres big. Eventually, Vegas visitors and residents will have the ability to go from resort to resort and hotspot to hotspot thanks to The Boring Company’s Vegas Loop. More hotels and resorts continue to seek entrance into the Vegas Loop, with the most recent being Resorts World, located just off of the Vegas Strip.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below, or be sure to email me at joey@teslarati.com or on Twitter @KlenderJoey.
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News
Tesla FSD V14.2.1 is earning rave reviews from users in diverse conditions
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software continues its rapid evolution, with the latest V14.2.1 update drawing widespread praise.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software continues its rapid evolution, with the latest V14.2.1 update drawing widespread praise for its smoother performance and smarter decision-making.
Videos and firsthand accounts from Tesla owners highlight V14.2.1 as an update that improves navigation responsiveness, sign recognition, and overall fluidity, among other things. Some drivers have even described it as “more alive than ever,” hinting at the system eventually feeling “sentient,” as Elon Musk has predicted.
FSD V14.2.1 first impressions
Early adopters are buzzing about how V14.2.1 feels less intrusive while staying vigilant. In a post shared on X, Tesla owner @LactoseLunatic described the update as a “huge leap forward,” adding that the system remains “incredibly assertive but still safe.”
Another Tesla driver, Devin Olsenn, who logged ~600 km on V14.2.1, reported no safety disengagements, with the car feeling “more alive than ever.” The Tesla owner noted that his wife now defaults to using FSD V14, as the system is already very smooth and refined.
Adverse weather and regulatory zones are testing grounds where V14.2.1 shines, at least according to testers in snow areas. Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt shared a video of his first snowy drive on unplowed rural roads in New Hampshire, where FSD did great and erred on the side of caution. As per Merritt, FSD V14.2.1 was “extra cautious” but it performed well overall.
-->Sign recognition and freeway prowess
Sign recognition also seemed to show improvements with FSD V14.2.1. Longtime FSD tester Chuck Cook highlighted a clip from his upcoming first-impressions video, showcasing improved school zone behavior. “I think it read the signs better,” he observed, though in standard mode, it didn’t fully drop to 15 mph within the short timeframe. This nuance points to V14.2.1’s growing awareness of temporal rules, a step toward fewer false positives in dynamic environments.
FSD V14.2.1 also seems to excel in high-stress highway scenarios. Fellow FSD tester @BLKMDL3 posted a video of FSD V14.2.1 managing a multi-lane freeway closure due to a police chase-related accident. “Perfectly handles all lanes of the freeway merging into one,” the Tesla owner noted in his post on X.
FSD V14.2.1 was released on Thanksgiving, much to the pleasant surprise of Tesla owners. The update’s release notes are almost identical to the system’s previous iteration, save for one line item read, “Camera visibility can lead to increased attention monitoring sensitivity.”
News
Tesla FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe begin in Italy, France, and Germany
The program allows the public to hop in as a non-driving observer to witness FSD navigate urban streets firsthand.
Tesla has kicked off passenger ride-alongs for Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in Italy, France and Germany. The program allows the public to hop in as a non-driving observer to witness FSD navigate urban streets firsthand.
The program, detailed on Tesla’s event pages, arrives ahead of a potential early 2026 Dutch regulatory approval that could unlock a potential EU-wide rollout for FSD.
Hands-Off Demos
Tesla’s ride-along invites participants to “ride along in the passenger seat to experience how it handles real-world traffic & the most stressful parts of daily driving, making the roads safer for all,” as per the company’s announcement on X through its official Tesla Europe & Middle East account.
Sign-ups via localized pages offer free slots through December, with Tesla teams piloting vehicles through city streets, roundabouts and highways.
“Be one of the first to experience Full Self-Driving (Supervised) from the passenger seat. Our team will take you along as a passenger and show you how Full Self-Driving (Supervised) works under real-world road conditions,” Tesla wrote. “Discover how it reacts to live traffic and masters the most stressful parts of driving to make the roads safer for you and others. Come join us to learn how we are moving closer to a fully autonomous future.”
-->Building trust towards an FSD Unsupervised rollout
Tesla’s FSD (Supervised) ride-alongs could be an effective tool to build trust and get regular car buyers and commuters used to the idea of vehicles driving themselves. By seating riders shotgun, Tesla could provide participants with a front row seat to the bleeding edge of consumer-grade driverless systems.
FSD (Supervised) has already been rolled out to several countries, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and partially in China. So far, FSD (Supervised) has been received positively by drivers, as it really makes driving tasks and long trips significantly easier and more pleasant.
FSD is a key safety feature as well, which became all too evident when a Tesla driving on FSD was hit by what seemed to be a meteorite in Australia. The vehicle moved safely despite the impact, though the same would likely not be true had the car been driven manually.
News
Swedish union rep pissed that Tesla is working around a postal blockade they started
Tesla Sweden is now using dozens of private residences as a way to obtain license plates for its vehicles.
Two years into their postal blockade, Swedish unions are outraged that Tesla is still able to provide its customers’ vehicles with valid plates through various clever workarounds.
Seko chairman Gabriella Lavecchia called it “embarrassing” that the world’s largest EV maker, owned by CEO Elon Musk, refuses to simply roll over and accept the unions’ demands.
Unions shocked Tesla won’t just roll over and surrender
The postal unions’ blockade began in November 2023 when Seko and IF Metall-linked unions stopped all mail to Tesla sites to force a collective agreement. License plates for Tesla vehicles instantly became the perfect pressure point, as noted in a Dagens Arbete report.
Tesla responded by implementing initiatives to work around the blockades. A recent investigation from Arbetet revealed that Tesla Sweden is now using dozens of private residences, including one employee’s parents’ house in Trångsund and a customer-relations staffer’s home in Vårby, as a way to obtain license plates for its vehicles.
Seko chairman Gabriella Lavecchia is not pleased that Tesla Sweden is working around the unions’ efforts yet again. “It is embarrassing that one of the world’s largest car companies, owned by one of the world’s richest people, has sunk this low,” she told the outlet. “Unfortunately, it is completely frivolous that such a large company conducts business in this way.”
-->Two years on and plates are still being received
The Swedish Transport Agency has confirmed Tesla is still using several different workarounds to overcome the unions’ blockades.
As noted by DA, Tesla Sweden previously used different addresses to receive its license plates. At one point, the electric vehicle maker used addresses for car care shops. Tesla Sweden reportedly used this strategy in Östermalm in Stockholm, as well as in Norrköping and Gothenburg.
Another strategy that Tesla Sweden reportedly implemented involved replacement plates being ordered by private individuals when vehicles change hands from Tesla to car buyers. There have also been cases where the police have reportedly issued temporary plates to Tesla vehicles.
Tesla FSD V14.2.1 is earning rave reviews from users in diverse conditions
Tesla FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe begin in Italy, France, and Germany
