Elon Musk’s Vegas Loop Has Committed Multiple Violations, Report Says

The Las Vegas Convention Center Loop (LVCC Loop), Elon Musk’s controversial underground transportation system, has reportedly committed a number of construction and environmental violations. According to a new report by investigative journalism outlet ProPublica, the tunneling efforts of Musk’s Boring company have had little oversight throughout the years.

Multiple Violations Were Committed, Journalists Reported

ProPublica journalists leveraged public record requests to uncover a variety of unknown facts about the ambitious transportation project. As a private project that does not receive government funding, the LVCC Loop has had little oversight, ProPublica argued. This led to a variety of reported violations.

As a result, citizens reported instances of Boring trucks spilling mud, rock and sand across Las Vegas. However, this only scratches the surface of some of Boring’s violations.

In 2023, for example, a Boring contractor replied on a permit held by a county contractor to store muck near apartment buildings without informing the county. The contractor in question was eventually fined.

In addition to that Boring, which was told to remove groundwater and filter it before discharging it into storm drains, skirted some of its responsibilities. In 2019, for example, it discharged water into storm drains without a permit. Two years later, Nevada officials sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company to bar it from taking actions that could cause unpermitted discharge of groundwater.

In 2022, Boring illegally connected to a sewer without approval. The next year state environmental regulators learned that untreated water was being dumped into the sewer. Officials were uncertain about how long this had been going on.

In 2023, officials also understood that Boring tunneled without permits required to work on country grounds. The company had to apply for permits retroactively and pay a fine.

Musk Treats Fines as Cost of Business

The violations aligned with Elon Musk’s view on regulations and outspoken criticism of environmental regulations. He previously slammed the latter as “terrible” because they require companies to get permission in advance as opposed to paying a penalty if you do something wrong.

Musk’s statement implied that he views financial penalties as nothing more than the cost of business, suggesting that he might not care about the breaches.

The Loop, for context, is planned to consist of some 68 miles, only 5 of which are operational as of the time of this writing. It is a part of Musk’s plans to revolutionize public transportation in cities, although his ideas have been criticized harshly and rejected in multiple states. In Nevada, Boring managed to avoid the standard public review process, sparking additional concerns about the project.