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Elon Musk’s Boring Company in talks with Fort Lauderdale mayor for tunneling project

(Credit: Ianaré Sévi/Wikimedia Commons)

The Boring Company (TBC) talked with Fort Lauderdale mayor Dean J. Trantalis about a potential tunneling project in New River recently. Mayor Trantalis stated that he, along with Vice Mayor Michael Udine and other officials, plan to visit the Boring Company’s Las Vegas people-mover to learn more about the tunneling company’s work. 

“I had another productive conversation with @elonmusk’s @boringcompany today about building a train tunnel through downtown #FortLauderdale,” wrote Mayor Trantalis in a tweet. 

He explained that a Boring Company tunnel was a “critical component” to reducing traffic in downtown Fort Lauderdale. However, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) doesn’t seem to feel the same way about working with TBC on a tunneling project. 

According to Mayor Trantalis, the FDOT believes a Boring Company tunnel would cost $3 billion and prefers to build a high-rise train trestle. The 55-foot high-bridge FDOT proposed would cost an estimated $445 million, as per the Sun Sentinel

However, TBC refuted FDOT’s $3 billion price. The Boring Company estimated that a tunneling project in downtown Fort Lauderdale would cost between $30 million to $60 million, significantly less than the high-bridge FDOT proposed.

“That’s why @boringcompany is so exciting. They are very interested in South Florida and say they can build a tunnel quickly and at an extremely reduced price – even cheaper than FDOT’s bridge,” said Mayor Trantalis. “They have already proven that with the system they built in Las Vegas.”

Earlier this month, Elon Musk revealed that he talked with Florida governor Ron DeSantis about tunnels in a reply to Mayor Francis Suarez of Miami, who also showed interest in talking with TBC about tunneling projects. 

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Elon Musk’s Boring Company in talks with Fort Lauderdale mayor for tunneling project
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