The Boring Company, owned by Elon Musk, has been chosen to design and build a system of tunnels connecting Universal’s Orlando theme parks, beating out two other bidders.
Elon Musk’s tunneling firm The Boring Company has been tapped to plow connections among Universal’s Orlando theme parks.
The board of the Shingle Creek Transit and Utility Community Development District, a special purpose district encompassing Universal properties, voted on Wednesday to begin contract negotiations with Musk’s firm to design and build the infrastructure improvements, following a monthslong competition.
The Boring Company was one of three bidders, alongside V2R and Sunshine Connection Partners. It is best known for its expertise in underground tunnels, having dug the “Vegas Loop” transportation network in Las Vegas, Nevada.
A system of tunnels linking Universal’s popular properties could be as iconic in the 21st century as Disney World’s monorails were in the 20th century. But little is known about how The Boring Company intends to proceed, including how it might approach constructing tunnels given Florida’s shallow water table.
The district sought bids from companies to design and build an innovative transportation system to provide connectivity between Universal’s parks and other assets.
The idea was to link the parks, including the popular new tourist draw, Epic Universe, to City Walk and Universal-owned hotels, according to Brian Gettinger, an executive for transit company Glydways, which helped Sunshine Connection Partners make its bid.
While Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure are within walking distance from each other, the new Epic Universe park is located about a 15-minute drive away.
The district did not specifically define a mode of transportation. But The Boring Company, founded and owned by tech billionaire Musk, who also owns SpaceX, digs tunnels, and Gettinger said he assumes that will be their approach. The district board said it found the company to have made the most qualified proposal of the bidders.
“Board members determined that The Boring Company’s proposal best addressed the District’s request for an innovative, future-ready, point-to-point solution,” the district said in a statement announcing the decision.
“The District will now continue collaborating with local stakeholders while exploring the operational and financial feasibility of the preferred proposal.”
The announcement posted on the district’s website made no mention of tunnels.
The district did not immediately respond to a request Wednesday evening for copies of the proposals made by The Boring Company and its competitors. Nor has it responded to a public records request submitted by the Orlando Sentinel in December.