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Elon Musk's new Las Vegas underground transport system compared to a 'cr**py Disney ride'

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 09:  A Tesla car drives through a tunnel in the Central Station during a media preview of the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop on April 9, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Las Vegas Convention Center Loop is an underground transportation system that is the first commercial project by Elon Musk’s The Boring Company. The USD 52.5 million loop, which includes two one-way vehicle tunnels 40 feet beneath the ground and three passenger stations, will take convention attendees across the 200-acre convention campus for free in all-electric Tesla vehicles in under two minutes. To walk that distance can take upward of 25 minutes. The system is designed to carry 4,400 people per hour using a fleet of 62 vehicles at maximum capacity. It is scheduled to be fully operational in June when the facility plans to host its first large-scale convention since the COVID-19 shutdown. There are plans to expand the system throughout the resort corridor in the future.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Elon Musk's underground transportation system has been panned by critics. (Getty)

Elon Musk's new underground public transport system unveiled in Las Vegas has been panned by critics who compared it to a "cr**py Disney ride" and suggested it was no more effective than a traditional subway.

The futuristic underground transportation system underneath the Las Vegas Convention Center campus was supposed to offer a quick way to move attendees at the convention around the campus in minutes, using electric Tesla cars.

The idea from Musk's The Boring Company had conjured up images like something from futuristic film, but fans were left disappointed when the new system, which cost around $50million, was unveiled on Friday (April 9) at a media preview.

Rather than driverless cars moving at speed between parts of the campus, the preview showed ordinary Tesla cars being driven by humans through a tunnel at around 35mph.

The system, which includes two one-way underground vehicle tunnels and three stations, is designed to carry 4,400 people per hour using a fleet of vehicles.

It is scheduled to be fully operational in June to coincide with the return of a large-scale convention at the centre.

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But critics and commentators were left underwhelmed by Friday's demonstration.

Tech website Gizmodo wrote: 'Elon Musk's 'Public Transit' in Las Vegas Still Just Humans Driving Cars Slowly in a Tunnel,' while the website Jalopnik used the headline: 'Elon Musk's Dumb Tesla Tunnel Now The Lamest Thing In Las Vegas!', with writer Jason Torchinsky saying: "It’s just some Tesla Model 3s driving slowly in a tube."

Watch: First look at underground tunnel

The project also came under fire on Twitter.

One user wrote: "You might think this is just a subway, but it's more like an underground highway," adding: "So, far less efficient at moving people..."

Another wrote: "Watch Teslas slowly move through Elon Musk's new Boring Company tunnel under Las Vegas. Cause it’s a crappy Disney Ride," and another user added: "Vegas actually let Elon Musk make a less efficient subway system."

One person compared it to a "moving walkway" while another posted a picture of an underground car tunnel, suggesting it was basically the same thing.

The system was created in a bid to address the issue of gridlock in Las Vegas.

Early plans for the system suggested vehicles would be able to carry 16 people at once, but at the moment it is using normal electric Model 3 and Model X Tesla cars, which can only travel at 35-40 mph because of the short distance of the tunnels.

Musk has also described plans for an underground train system called Hyperloop that would move people from city to city in record time.

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