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Message from the Mayor

t our last meeting before a summer recess, the City Commission formally
received a proposal from Elon Musk’s The Boring Co. to build an underground
A transit system from downtown to the beach via Las Olas Boulevard. We gave
other companies 45 days to submit competing proposals for consideration.

This could be a real game-changer for Fort Lauderdale in how we address traffic
congestion. An underground transit line could remove tourists and suburban beach-goers
from street-level traffic, reducing the gridlock that city residents regularly face.
The exact details of The Boring Co.’s plans are confidential as we await any other
proposals. However, The Boring Co.’s transit concept is fully operational in Las Vegas.
The system there carries passengers via dedicated Teslas in a pair of one-way tunnels
between three stops underneath the city’s massive convention center. Vegas and The
Boring Co. are planning a major expansion that will extend the loop along the Strip with
stops at major hotels, the airport and the sports stadium.
The Teslas in the Vegas loop operate much like taxis. The number of Teslas in operation
Dean Trantalis can vary based on demand. Drivers take passengers directly to their destination rather
Mayor, than making stops at each station. Eventually, Las Vegas wants state approval for the cars
City of Fort Lauderdale to be autonomous.
dtrantalis@fortlauderdale.gov
The commission’s decision on July 6 is just the beginning of our consideration of
underground transit. Any proposal we choose will need to be studied from a geotechnical
standpoint and the financing of the project determined.
But these are not insurmountable.
Remember, we already have two tunnels in South Florida. The Kinney Tunnel was
City Hall, 8th Floor completed in 1960, and the Port of Miami a tunnel opened in 2014. Further, The Boring
100 N Andrews Ave Co. dealt with a variety of subterranean conditions in Las Vegas, including building
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311
tunnels through a high water table.
In terms of financing, state and federal aid is possible as is money from the voter-
approved transportation surtax. Other options include a ridership fee. This is not some
multibillion-dollar subway behemoth. The Boring Co. proved in Las Vegas that their system
can be built at an affordable cost.
I view a route to and from the beach as the start of something bigger. When the city
backed off construction of the Wave streetcar, all involved acknowledged that another
public transit solution would need to be found considering the size of our city and
Office Contact growing traffic volume.
Scott Wyman
Chief of Staff A second phase of an underground network could extend to the airport, seaport and
Office of the Mayor convention center. Other future lines could be along SE 17th Street and Sunrise Boulevard
swyman@fortlauderdale.gov
954-828-5314 or out west to the Nova Southeastern University campus, the Hard Rock casino and the
Sawgrass Mills mall. We would need to build consensus with other governments to
undertake those possibilities.
And don’t think we forgot about our other initiatives, as we continue to pursue transit
solutions in response to our ever-changing downtown. That is why, for example, the one-
way pairing concept along Andrews and Third Avenue is vital to creating a sustainable
urban center, where dedicated lanes for rapid transit can ameliorate local traffic
conditions.
By pursuing transit networks, we are not taking away our focus from other priorities in the
city. Efforts to upgrade our aging water and sewer infrastructure are ahead of schedule,
CITY OF FORT LAUDERDALE
and we will soon open the new central city sewer line. (continued page14)

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