A tunnel under Fort Lauderdale? Mayor says Elon Musk’s company wants to build it

Could Elon Musk build a tunnel under the New River in Fort Lauderdale?

Mayor Dean Trantalis spent Monday talking to Musk’s Boring Co. about it. And Broward County officials are slated to have another discussion with the company Wednesday.

The background: After years — if not decades — of discussion, new commuter rail is being planned along the Florida East Coast railway tracks in South Florida. While there remain numerous details to work out, a Coastal Link is now seriously being considered to supplement Brightline’s express service.

The problem: Should that commuter rail be built, it would further clog up east- and west-bound traffic — not to mention marine travel — at the New River.

Enter Musk’s Boring Company. In a meeting Monday, Musk’s tunnel-building company said it could build an underpass for area commuters, according to Trantalis, at a fraction of the cost proposed by the state: $3.3 billion, or about $1 billion per mile.

Trantalis said the details of how exactly Boring would be able to build a tunnel for what they said could be as low as $10 million per mile were not thoroughly discussed. Instead, Boring Co. officials invited Trantalis to visit the underground rail system the company has planned underneath Las Vegas.

“Both parties — the city and Boring — seem excited about the prospect,” of building a tunnel here, Trantalis said.

A Boring Co. representative did not respond to a request for comment.

The Wednesday meeting would also include talk of building other possible tunnels in Broward County, and even the possibility of a light rail system, Trantalis said.

Wednesday’s meeting will be attended by Broward Vice Mayor Michael Udine, who as a county commissioner has served as an advocate for growing the area’s tech resources. It was not immediately clear whether officials from Florida East Coast Industries, which owns the land where the tunnel would be built, would also be in attendance. An FECI official did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

“When you’re talking to these companies about moving in, just making that gesture of outreach and being receptive and making sure they’re not going to be stepping over bureaucratic red tape, that goes a long way,” Udine said.

The Broward meetings follow Musk’s offer earlier this month to help solve Miami-Dade’s transit woes. On Jan. 18, Musk Tweeted, “Cars & trucks stuck in traffic generate megatons of toxic gases & particulate, but @boringcompany road tunnels under Miami would solve traffic & be an example to the world.”

Plans are in place to speak with Boring Co. officials, Suarez told the Miami Herald last week. A representative for Suarez said she was not aware of any date yet set for those talks.

If the ideas seem pie-in-the-sky, Trantalis and Udine don’t disagree. Boring only just submitted plans for its larger Vegas network; for now, there is a passageway for Sin City convention-goers. A similar Boring Co. network outside Los Angeles is also in early stages.

But Broward officials said the proposal still merits consideration. Boring told the Las Vegas city council that the project there could be funded without public dollars, though Trantalis said a similar offer had not yet been made to Fort Lauderdale.

“I’m not to ready to dismiss this option — we have to pursue it and see if it applies to our topography and needs,” Trantalis said.

Said Udine, “We’re going to have to build something there — either a bridge or a tunnel,” he said of the New River juncture. “Being able to talk to Elon Musk’s company, a cutting edge company, I’m always happy to take and facilitate a meeting like that.”