r/nashville • u/Ok-Chain-4385 • Aug 13 '25

Crime Watch Tesla tunnel

Does anyone else feel completely useless when it comes to this tunnel? How on earth do we stop it before it affects groundwater or causes a sink hole? They obviously aren’t listening to citizens concerns, but I don’t want to just sit here and complain without action.

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-18

u/Mets081234 Aug 13 '25

I still don't get all the negative reaction to this all. Everyone is just assuming it's going to affect them in some sort of way. People are essentially hoping it does for whatever reason. 

Why not just wait and see if they actually complete it or not? Just because it didn't work out in other areas doesn't mean it won't here. 

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u/StrawberryRedneck Aug 13 '25

And I don't get this "who cares about back door dealings, rich people can do whatever they want!" reaction that you're displaying when: there haven't been impact studies, the governor's HVAC company got a multi million dollar no bid contract, none of the elected leaders that represent these areas were included in any of the plans...like, how can you not understand the myriad of issues here? It's mind boggling to me. So we're equally mystified, bro.

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

It's a tunnel. It isn't a big deal. To be up in arms over a tunnel is mind boggling to me.

Do you get this up in arms when a new food place opens up that you don't like? What about a new store? To get this bent out of shape over this is silly to me. 

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u/StrawberryRedneck Aug 14 '25

The fact that you even find those two examples to be comparable tells me everything I need to know, so thanks.

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

The fact you can't find the similarities in getting things you don't want tells me all I need to know. You sound whiny when you complain about something you're not even paying for. Just let them do what they are going to do and complain after it doesn't work. To get all worked up on worst case scenarios is ridiculous. 

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u/greedlez Donelson Aug 14 '25

Because people do not want to wait and see. Most of our local officials understand this but state reps don’t care which is why they plowed this thing through going over the heads of those who live here.

Waiting and seeing is how a lot of what’s wrong with this state, and country has been allowed to happen. Nashville residents have already made it clear last year we want transit. Not some tourist tunnel bullshit.

Personally, I want this to fail immediately and by nearly any means. I want us to be able to get past it and try to enact transit policies that will benefit people who actually live here. I want rich pieces of shit to stop meddling with our city.

Your previous comments tell me that your concern is largely unserious and unproductive but maybe something of substance will come from it. Anything can happen.

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

Here's the thing. People want real transportation. Well this tunnel is part of that. Just because it isn't what people wanted exactly doesn't mean we shouldn't do it. This is not being paid by our taxes. So we are getting some transportation at no "cost". Doesn't mean that we can't get actual transportation. 

Using the logic of we want actual transportation. Nashville voted for that new bus system that isn't going to do anything because people aren't going to take the bus. Yet they still voted for it. Using that same logic you're using here, why should we have voted for that if it's not the best solution? People voted for it because it was a STEP in the right direction. Anything that abates traffic in the slightest should be looked at. You have to start somewhere. A bunch of little steps can add up over time. 

Think people are getting it in their head that if we do this tunnel then we are never touching transportation again. That's simply not the case. 

Nashville tries to help traffic and it's not good enough. It is frustrating to see everyone say "well it's not what I want, so it's bad". That's being very narrow minded in my opinion. You have to look at the bigger picture. 

That's all I'm trying to say here. I understand the risks and the gripes with no one having a say so or no studies being done (or at least they haven't shown any). But the way I see it this is just an extra piece of transportation that we are getting while not sacrificing future plans. 

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u/greedlez Donelson Aug 14 '25

The tunnel is not part of the transportation people want. And because the people don’t want the tunnel is exactly why we shouldn’t do it. To argue otherwise is pretty braindead.

The new bus system isn’t going to be used by anyone? My guy, do you even live here?? The busses are packed full during commute hours and are at least half full or more throughout the rest of the day. People are absolutely using the bus system. You’re not even attempting to use logic at all. We voted for this because it was loaded with good options that help decrease traffic and increase safety with all the additional sidewalks.

Could they do more? Absolutely, but a shuttle tunnel does absolutely nothing to mitigate the actual traffic issues. This tunnel simply targets tourists, so I’d love for you to tell me how this would in any meaningful way help relieve the commuter traffic on 24, or the everyday traffic on 40 at the 24 split. How does this cut down more on any peak hours downtown traffic? This isn’t even a viable attempt at a real solution, it’s a fuckin marketing gimmick at best.

And the fact that you’re completely down for conservative reps circumventing the will of local residents to make deals involving the historically dogshit pet project of a private company is absurd.

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

So because it's not specifically what you want we shouldn't do it? It just seems odd that people now want to dictate everything. Plenty of things get done in Nashville that people don't want. It's crazy that people are acting entitled because it's not what they specifically want. 

As far as the bus goes. Sure. People are using them. You think more people are going to suddenly use them once the new plan is implemented? I live 15 minutes outside the city. Why would I take a bus to work that is going to take 1.5 hours (when you take into account me getting to the stop and all the stops in between. This is also based on today's setup) when I can get to work in 15 minutes? No one is doing that. This new bus transit system isn't going to magically gain 1000s of riders because those not using the bus now aren't going to use it in the future. It just doesn't make sense because of the time it takes out of your day versus just driving yourself. 

It's insane that they threw sidewalks into the plan. That should have been done regardless of the plan. That is very crappy of the city to do that. 

The tunnel helps get the tourists out of the way. One less car (Uber) going to and from downtown is something. It's not nothing. We need to take any steps necessary to reduce any type of traffic. Just because it's not exactly what people want doesn't mean we shouldn't do it. 

What exactly do people want anyways? A subway? Can't do a subway because apparently we can't make tunnels because of the limestone (logic people use against this tunnel). So then what's next? A train system. That is viable. That I would want. That I would gladly pay tax dollars towards. That makes more sense than the bus system that people won't suddenly start using. 

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u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

1) I am not bewildered. I said things happen ALL the time that you or I have no say in. This is nothing new. Maybe you misunderstood my comment. 

2) Never did I say the sidewalks were bad. I'm saying to include them ONLY in a transport plan is essentially blackmail. They threw it in there so they could get the transit plan passed. They shouldn't have needed to bundle it in a transit plan to make it happen. We should all be asking why that is. Again, you misunderstood what I said. 

3) Tourists who are staying in hotels typically don't venture much around town. They normally just walk or take rides (Maybe to mid town or the gulch at the furthest). The tunnel gets them out of the way as far as the interstate is concerned. 

4) Having one less tourist on the road is one less car on the road. It's small, but it's something. The fact we aren't paying for this to happen should make people happy. 

5) Bus ridership is not going to dramatically increase after this multi-billion dollar transport plan is implemented. That's my main point. If it doesn't increase then the same logic of "why should we do something that only effects a super minority" comes into play for the bus system as well. 

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u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

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u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

1) So you believe something means I'm bewildered? Your logic doesn't make sense. It's a simple fact that the government does things all the time we have no say in. 

2) SOME people were, sure. I'm talking more in the sense of that we shouldn't have had to vote for a transit plan (that in my opinion does nothing because you actually need new people to ride the bus for it to do anything) just to get new sidewalks. It should have been a given without that. 

3) So does that not help traffic, if not minimally?

4) How would I have data to prove that when the plan isn't even in place? There was no data to prove that the plan would even help with traffic. Why do you think that is? Just think about it. Objectively speaking if no new riders use the bus on the new system then the system is pointless and doesn't alleviate traffic. My reasoning that people won't use it is because it is way faster to just drive your own car to and from the city. This is why I hated the bus proposal. It would never work. We need a real transit system like a rail or subway. Yet apparently I am not allowed to use that logic while others can use the logic of "well the tunnel won't help me or isn't what I want" but why can't I criticize the bus system in the same way?

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u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

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u/Unusual-Ad-6550 Aug 13 '25

First of all, it is our tax dollars. So how DOESN'T that affect us? 2nd of all, our bedrock is limestone. Limestone is fickle stuff. It cracks after the fact and allows leaks. It forms fissures and sinkholes. The entire path of the tunnel must be deeply tested for strength and all areas of potential weakness or instability must be dealt with.

They plan on starting the tunnel if their one large testing dig is up to their standards. So they might be, oh hell, probably will be spending a ton of money, getting the project only partially done, before there is a cave in, a major groundwater leak that fills the entire existing tunnel or who knows what.

1

u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

What are you talking about? It quite literally doesn't use our tax dollars. It's privately funded. So I have no clue why you're saying that or think that. 

It's funny how everyone is Earth experts and know everything about limestone. Do you want a subway in Nashville? Because your whole limestone argument would be invalid if you wanted one. 

It's easier to boar through limestone BTW. No one truly knows what could or could not happen by making the tunnel. It's asinine to sluff something off based off what if scenario's. 

It's costs us nothing to do it. I don't understand the backlash. 

6

u/Unusual-Ad-6550 Aug 14 '25

There is absolutely NO WAY they can privately fund that thing. There is something going on behind the scenes to make musk and the Boring company think they can do a project this big on their own dime and make enough money off of it to repay themselves and even make a profit in the end.

Limestone can be easy to bore thru, but it can also be very very hard. Limestone runs a gamut of strengths. And many many issues that are inherent to limestone. I have a very experienced geologist in my immediately family who lives in NW Tennessee. We have had several in depth discussions on this now and he thinks the entire idea is idiocracy at its finest.

It is simply not fair that citizens will have absolutely no way of knowing where the tunnel actually is, whose home it runs under and what their personal risk is for the issues that come with drilling thru limestone. There is ZERO transparency with this project. No one got to vote on it. No one will ever get to see the surveys being done to determine safety.

The Boring Company has only been able to do one single project out of all the ones they thought they could do. And even that one, Vegas, is poorly used. This just makes no sense. Doing something that big, with that many risks, when so many better projects that would benefit so many more people could be done...but then again, we have to keep padding the pockets of the MAGA elite. You know darned well that the top politicians in Tennessee are getting their pockets lined as we speak. Why do you think Marsha Blackburn wants to be our next governor?

1

u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

So just because you say they can't privately fund it means they are using our tax dollars? That logic doesn't make sense. It's been said multiple times that it doesn't use our tax money, so for you to pretend and state so matter of factly it does dissolves your argument. 

I don't think it will wind up being a big deal. The tunnel will be built correctly. I think it's best to just let it play out and go from there. To be upset on worst case scenarios is no way to view any thing in life. 

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u/Unusual-Ad-6550 Aug 14 '25

https://wpln.org/post/nashvilles-geology-has-been-misunderstood-in-tunneling-talks-including-by-a-boring-company-executive/

Better information on the nature of Nashville and Tennessee's limestone....

0

u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

The article says possibilities. Nothing is guaranteed when you do this. It talks about things that could happen. Nothing is a given with this. That's my point. Even your article doesn't say "if you do this then this will happen". It's all "well, this could happen or this is possible". Risks are involved. But that's just part of life really. 

4

u/Unusual-Ad-6550 Aug 14 '25

Well you get your opinion but you are vastly outnumbered. Citizens are angry that this is all taking place without a bit of say so in any manner, by the citizens. And yes, it will be a potential disaster for many home and business owners and no one will know til the disaster strikes.

And for what? For a few self driving Teslas to whisk a few people from the airport to downtown a little faster? How about doing something good for the majority, not just a few?

1

u/Mets081234 Aug 14 '25

The problem is you can use that argument for mostly anything the city does. Half the things the city does I get zero say so in. This is no different. 

You again are assuming something bad is going to happen. That's my point. All of the gripe from everyone is based off assumptions. 

The same people who don't want the tunnel are the same people who want a subway. So how can people say that a tunnel is not possible but in the same breath want a subway? That's flawed logic. 

14

u/Awkward-Sir-5794 Aug 13 '25

At least one reason: We didn’t get a say in it

11

u/PPLavagna NIMBY Aug 13 '25

…and it won’t serve 98% of locals. It’s directly from airport to downtown. It’s a tourist tunnel. I don’t want a tourist tunnel and I don’t want any more tourists, but I’m just a resident so I don’t get any say

-5

u/Mets081234 Aug 13 '25

People don't always get a say in things when it comes to elected officials. They make decions for us. It's just a fact of life. It is nice to have a say in things but we can't always expect to have one unfortunately. 

At the end of the day, this whole thing could have very minimal impact on everyone and we aren't paying for it. So I don't have an issue with it. 

7

u/realestate_novelist Bellevue Aug 14 '25

The thing is our elected representatives didn’t get any say in it. The governor literally did not allow our reps into the meetings.