Elon Musk and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel presented their plans in June to build a tunnel that could bring passengers from downtown Chicago to O’Hare International Airport in 12 minutes.
With Emanuel’s announcement that he won’t run for a third term and growing skepticism about the logistics of Musk’s plan, however, it’s now up for debate as to whether the Chicago tunnel will ever be built, according to The New York Times.
The train, in theory, would take the form of driverless electric pods — modified Teslas — and travel 150 miles per hour through the 17-mile tunnel. A trip on the proposed train would cost $25 and would fit 16 passengers, features that would likely appeal to wealthier passengers rather than the large majority of people who currently use public transportation.
Musk has said he will pay the $1 billion necessary to help make the train a reality. Contract negotiations between Chicago and Musk’s Boring Company are underway, and the City Council will rule on the project later this year. Though Emanuel remains confident that the project will move forward, as DePaul public policy professor Joseph P. Schwieterman told The Times, “There’s an air of unreality to the project.”
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