Regulator Smacks Elon Musk’s Vegas Loop with $112K over Safety Violations

Yet, the Vegas Loop has now faced pressure from the Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which has issued a $112,000 fine to the company for serious safety violations linked to the well-being of on-site workers and having “a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could occur.”

OSHA Highlights Serious Shortcomings

This is not the first time a regulator has had to step in and investigate what have been claims of poor safety practices at Musk-backed companies, with Tesla plants criticized for harsh working conditions before. Musk has denied those allegations and said that he works on-site himself and often for days on end.

The Boring Company, which develops the Tesla tunnels, as the Vegas Loop and the concept of the underground infrastructure project is referred to, did not take sufficient measures to protect workers in at least one incident that saw them affected by heavy chemicals that caused chemical burns, skin irritation, and skin rashes, the regulator outlined in a public statement criticizing the encounter.

The issue was compounded by the fact that the employees were unable to receive immediate care, as there were no showers for one, and to add insult to injury, the workers themselves did not have sufficient protective gear, such as face or eye protection when working with hazardous materials.

The regulator further established that the company had also failed to sufficiently train workers how to handle hazardous materials even though such were present in and around the construction of the Las Vegas Loop. The Boring Company has not accepted any of the accusations levelled against it lightly either, or it is contesting all, with a hearing date to be set for the company to argue its case.

Las Vegas Needs to Ease Traffic Congestion at Almost Any Cost

To the company’s credit, it has already notified the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, which directly benefits from the Las Vegas Loop project which is developed to drive traffic to the strip. The authority has paid $52 million out-of-pocket money to fund the project, and no taxpayer funds have been used.

The Las Vegas Loop has been advancing well, with a significant part of the network already delivered, but another 68 miles yet to be completed. Traffic congestion has been a growing concern for Las Vegas, with the city hoping to host more major sports events, including the Super Bowl, Formula 1, and the arrival of sports franchises, with Mayor Carolyn Goodman openly advocating for the introduction of more professional teams to the area to boost traffic, sports tourism, and tax windfall.

Businesses have already called for compensation because of the Formula 1 race that was held in the city in November and led to the closing of thoroughfares and main streets, causing billions of up to $23 million in damages.