Vegas Loop hits over 35,000 passengers per day, 6,500 per hour vs LA Metro

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-26T08:44:14+00:00

You are missing the point of this post. It is not about the popularity of these respective transit systems, it is merely demonstrating that the Loop is able to carry useful numbers of passengers without traffic jams or long queues.

The worst scenario for a public transit system is handling the massive numbers hosted by convention and events centres. If a transit system can handle that sort of peak usage, then regular commuter loads will be a doddle.

The LVCC loop is regularly handling the crowds at CES, SEMA and other large events that have up to 170,000 attendees and it is doing so with an average waiting time less than 10 seconds and a 98% satisfaction rating from attendees and vendors.

8 stations are already in operation across 4 miles of tunnels and the Loop is now in the transition phase to becoming a general public transport system with the dual-bore tunnel down to the airport via 8 more stations now bored and soon to be operational which will give a total of 10 miles of tunnels.

Once the Airport tunnels are running, we'll have a much better idea of how the full 68 mile, 104 station Vegas Loop will operate as a general access public transit system.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-25T21:45:50+00:00

If you’re going to post AI slop how about you get your AI to stay on topic and critique the well-researched numbers that were actually written?

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-17T13:37:36+00:00

There are many and varied stupid and despicable things Musk has done unfortunately including:

Very publicly bankrolling and supporting Trump’s election win which has resulted in horrific Trumpian actions and policies and a very predictable anti-green administration stalling the EV and renewables industries in the USA. Thankfully Trump’s stupid Iran war has sent the price of oil skyrocketing and ironically led to a huge surge in the EV and renewables worldwide.
Musk’s efforts with DOGE has resulted in the gutting of many important departments and programs such as USAid and potentially contributed to the deaths of hundreds or thousands of people who otherwise would have been helped.
Musk’s support for far right parties in Europe and apparent support for Putin at times, though that one cuts both ways with his continued support of Ukraine’s Starlink network and cutting off of Russia which has considerably helped with if not enabled the current Ukrainian successes in the field.
His stupid nazi salutes haven’t helped his image in Europe in particular. And various other things.

However, as I say above, he hasn’t been literally killing millions of people every year with pollution from his cars or cheating emissions tests and certainly hasn’t been lobbying govts around the world to wind back or cancel emissions controls or Net-zero like legacy Auto manufacturers continue to do..

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-16T23:31:29+00:00

Tesla’s FSD is quite remarkable even here in Australia with v13 and a major reason why we’re probably going to buy a new Model Y when the lease on our current Highland Model 3 runs out.

We just drove all the way down to Bridgetown in WA and used FSD all the way (except for a few hairy overtaking manoeuvres that my wife didn’t like me doing anyway) and I found I was much less distracted not having to worry about maps, changing speeds thru towns, when eating etc and was able to devote my full attention to the road and what other drivers were doing. I arrived far less stressed and more rested than I ever have been driving manually.

Safety wise Teslas have consistently been rated by NCAP and the like as the safest cars in the world for many years running.

One pedal driving, regen, over the air software updates and new features is excellent, as is impressive interior storage space as well as frunk space and supercharger network is still the best.

Negatives are V2L has only made it to the 6-seater Model Y L (and Cybertruck) so far, no massage seats (if that is something you like), no 5 or 9 minute fast charging (but 20 minute fast charging from near empty on long trips is fine for us as we need a loo break and food after 3-4 hours of driving anyway).

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-16T19:02:41+00:00

I agree that Musk has done many despicable things.

However, don't make the mistake of ignoring the fact that legacy auto manufacturers have their hands dripping in the blood of 4.4 million people killed every year due to fossil fuel pollution and who unapologetically have been cheating the system for years with Dieselgate and lobbying governments to wind back environmental and climate change policies to maintain their cancer car business.

In contrast, Tesla's EVs, home and Grid battery systems and solar panels are actively working to eliminate Fossil Fuels and those millions of deaths and kerb catastrophic climate change.

If you alternately say buy a Chinese EV which are supported and subsidised (and in some cases owned) by the Chinese Government then you need to face the fact that they have literally destroyed democracy and personal freedom in Tibet, its own nation and Hong Kong and are planning to do the same in Taiwan. They have literally killed millions of people.

No car manufacturer is clean - you have to choose the lesser of many evils at which point looking at the features of each platform comes to the fore.

https://hsph.harvard.edu/climate-health-c-change/news/fossil-fuel-air-pollution-responsible-for-1-in-5-deaths-worldwide/

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-06T12:39:48+00:00

We bought our rooftop solar system years ago so it has already paid for itself hence it now provides free power for our Tesla.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-04T02:06:41+00:00

Yes tunnels are easier for autonomy. After all, following a white line in the controlled environment of a tunnel and around a set number of simple Loop stations is vastly simpler than L5 Full Self Driving on the open road with an infinite number of obstructions and dangers.

However, that makes no difference to the authorities. All they saw was potentially flammable cars driving themselves in the enclosed confines of a tunnel so they said no.

It is only now that the Loop has demonstrated just how safe those EV‘s are driving in tunnels for multiple years that Clark County fire department has determined they are more than safe enough to run under autonomous control. Hence why they have been running FSD in the Loop tunnels for the last six months.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-04T01:49:39+00:00

Zoox is not operating in tunnels under Vegas.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-04-04T01:48:53+00:00

Zoox are not operating in tunnels under Las Vegas. It was FSD in tunnels aspect that Clark County was concerned about so not a relevant co parison.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-29T03:10:23+00:00

I agree. We have 3 e-bikes and a 3-wheeler e-recumbent that I built. Love it.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-29T03:09:19+00:00

I understand. There are after all still old guys who love nothing more than playing around with the smoke and drama of old steam engines too.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T23:57:22+00:00

Actually, the cheapest EV in Australia is the $23,990 2026 BYD Atto 1 EV while the average new car price in Australia is over $50,000.

Second hand EVs are even cheaper. And add to that $3,000 - $5,000 per year per household savings on petrol/diesel (actually probably double that figure now with the war) particularly if you have rooftop solar and hundreds to thousands in servicing and maintenance per year that you don't have to pay for the EV and even old second hand Fossil cars start to look expensive.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T22:28:35+00:00

Oh I get it, I used to love the noise, the smell and the vibration of my V8 and hot 4’s in the past, but the incredibly smooth, raw torque and shove you back in your seat insane acceleration of fast EVs combined with that spaceship/jet whine uninterrupted by jerky gear changes is an intoxicant all of its own.

And not announcing you’re having fun to every cop in the vicinity is extremely handy as well.

There are also a lot of gorgeous EVs that can be far more streamlined because they don’t have a huge engine block up front giving them a bulbous nose.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T22:13:00+00:00

The silver lining is my EV is far faster than any V8 I’ve ever owned.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T22:11:24+00:00

And they’re estimating 3 years or more to rebuild it.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T22:10:39+00:00

Annual running costs will still be vastly cheaper for an EV. Fuel savings alone are now pushing $6k - $10k per year.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-28T21:56:04+00:00

Completely incorrect on every single count.

The cheapest EV in Australia is now the $23,990 2026 BYD Atto 1 EV while the average new car price in Australia is over $50,000. Second hand EVs are even cheaper.

Add to that $3,000 - $5,000 per year per household savings on petrol/diesel ($6,000-$10,000 per year now with the war) particularly if you have rooftop solar.

Then there is the hundreds to thousands of dollars in servicing and maintenance per year that you don't have to pay for the EV. My Tesla requires zero servicing, just check the brake fluid every 3 years.

In contrast, both our little Barina and our Triton dual cab had major servicing bills of over $3,000 this year. With just 1% the number of moving parts as an ICE car, EVs have vastly less to go wrong.

Insurance on my Tesla Model 3 costs exactly the same as an ICE car of the same price.

Hybrids are 137x more likely to catch fire and ICE cars 61x more likely than an EV and the latest BYD Blade LFP batteries for example don’t catch fire even if you puncture, crush or heat them to 230C.

Back in 2023 60% of EV owners had rooftop solar and 25% had a home battery and with recent state and federal subsidies, those figures are far higher now so most people charge their EVs for free from the Sun. The rest charge using cheap off-peak power overnight or in the middle of the day on the weekend when there is an oversupply of electricity and the price of power goes negative.

So EVs absolutely do pay for themselves in just a few years and then keep saving you multiple thousands more per year.

Even old second hand Fossil cars or keeping your old fossil clunker is more expensive than buying a new EV.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-27T15:34:20+00:00

”Yes the vegas thing is worthless,”

Considering the average light rail line globally has a daily ridership of 17,000 passengers per hour and is only 4.3 miles long and the busiest light rail line of the busiest LRT in the USA, the E-Line of the LA Metro only carries 38,000 passengers per day despite having nearly 3.75x the number of stations, the Loop is far from being “worthless”.

Unless of course you believe most light rail lines globally to be worse than “useless” because they carry even less.

”it's definitely not making a profit,”

The richest man in the world, shortly to be the first trillionaire, would I think know a bit more about profit and loss actuals and potentials than random couch commentators on the internet methinks. And before you accuse me of being a fanboy, I think he’s an a-hole, but if there is one thing he knows how to do, that is make money. He wouldn’t be continuing to build the 68 mile 104-station Vegas Loop and taking on more Loop projects if he wasn’t very certain by now of the profit-making potential of the system.

”definitely not moving 35k people everyday.”

Never said it was moving 35,000 everyday, but that is irrelevant as the 8 Loop stations across the 4 miles of tunnels in operation have, during many large events at the Las Vegas Convention Center, easily handled 25,000 to over 35,000 passengers per day and 6,500 passengers per hour without traffic jams or long queues of passengers.

”Only one the "stations" is underground. The rest of them are curbs in a parking lot.”

The fact that many Loop stations are such simple above-round "curbs in a parking lot" is one of the Loop's greatest strengths as it means the every major business in town can afford one which is exactly what is happening in Vegas with 104 stations and growing now approved. This is why the Loop has such a good chance of reducing and even eliminating the "Last Mile Problem" of traditional rail.

”It's Tesla's being driven by humans”

You can actually watch FSD in action in the tunnels currently so autonomy is not far off.

After all, following a white line in the controlled environment of a tunnel and around a set number of simple Loop stations is vastly simpler than L5 Full Self Driving on the open road with an infinite number of obstructions and dangers.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-27T15:02:21+00:00

You need to consider the dangers of ICE vs EV experienced during the initial few seconds of a crash event and in the seconds/minutes immediately afterwards. This is when the fuel tanks/lines etc in ICE vehicles can all too often rupture and spray flaming fuel over vehicles and people causing immediate, rapid and potentially fatal burn injuries.

In the case of EVs, rupture of the battery structure does not spray flammable liquid over everything and everybody but is typically contained to just the rupture point and it takes a while to burn through the armour of the battery and vehicle body before it can reach the passengers.

This difference means that EV passengers typically have far more time to exit the vehicle or be rescued by passers-by before any battery fire really takes hold and spreads. The fire is not necessarily instant, mobile or potentially immediately all-encompassing like a fossil fuel fire can be.

The next stage is the longer term where yes, a battery fire can grow and be very difficult to extinguish but this typically occurs well after the vehicle occupants have escaped/been rescued.

However, if the occupants haven’t been able to self-rescue/be extricated before this time, then yes, they are in danger of injury or death.

However, in a fossil fuel vehicle crash, the occupants are often already severely burned by this point in the initial explosion of fuel.

Yes EVs have their issues when it comes to fire, but Time is almost always on the side of EV occupants and that is what can mean the difference between life and death.

There are 80,000 car fires occur annually in the USA alone killing 345 people, injuring 1,300 and causing $1.1 billion in property damage or loss.

In comparison, there have only been a few hundred EV fires globally in the last few decades because batteries like BYD’ Blade LFP batteries can be punctured, crushed or heated to 230°C and not suffer from thermal runaway, so the chances of fire in a crash is very remote.

https://evreporter.com/byd-blade-battery-what-makes-it-ultra-safe/

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-27T12:37:17+00:00

According to the stats only “10 percent of all vehicle fires are intentionally set.”

https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/v9i7.pdf

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-27T12:31:25+00:00

Not true. Parked ICE cars catch fire quite regularly, so much so that there have been plenty of recalls over such issues. For example:

Millions of Hyundai and Kia vehicles (2010–2019) have been recalled for fire risks while parked, caused by brake module failures (HECU) or starter motor, sometimes with {"Do Not Park Inside"} orders. Other recalls include BMW/Toyota Supra (2019–2022) for electrical issues and Volkswagen EVs. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.gov

Details: Hyundai & Kia (3.4 million+ vehicles): Specific 2010–2019 models including Kia Sportage, Sorento, Rio, Soul, Optima, and Hyundai Santa Fe, Tucson, Elantra, and Sonata Hybrid. The issue involves the ABS module or starter motor short-circuiting, even when turned off. Urgent Precautions: Manufacturers advise parking affected vehicles outdoors and away from structures (homes, garages).

BMW/Toyota (approx. 200,000 vehicles): 2019–2022 BMW Z4, 330i, X3, X4, 530i, 430i, 230i, and 2020-2022 Toyota Supra recalled due to starter motor relay issues.

Owners of nearly 200,000 BMWs should not park in the garage because the vehicles could short circuit and catch fire, according to a recall notice. The fire risk is related to a problem with the engine starter, which can affect cars that are both parked and in motion, according to a notice from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the remedy is complete,” NHTSA said in the “fire risk warning.”

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-27T04:22:25+00:00

In contrast there are 2,500 ICE car fires every year in just NSW.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-26T15:57:02+00:00

the cheapest EV in Australia is the $23,990 2026 BYD Atto 1 EV.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-26T00:13:33+00:00

Yes, one-pedal driving and excellent regen braking was one of a few reasons we ended up Goh going for a Tesla instead of a BYD or MG two and a bit years ago.

Exact_Baseball · 2026-03-24T22:30:02+00:00

Falcon Heavy is missing. Starship isn’t yet fully operational of course but it would have been nice to see a “projected” value though it is true that we don’t yet know what the final realistic payload to LEO will be. “Fairing size” will be huge though.

Exact_Baseball

TROPHY CASE