The Federal Railway Administration, the National Railway Agency, brought a boring company, a tunnel firm founded by Elon Musk to see if this could help with the Amtrak project worth more than one billion dollars, according to three people who are familiar with discussions.
Federal officials of the Railway Administration spoke to Boring Company employees about Frederick Douglass Tunnel, the new tunnel along the busy section of Amtrak, which connects Baltimore with Washington and Virginia. At first, Amtrak expected development to cost $ 6 billion, but now estimates that it could cost up to $ 8.5 billion.
As part of the interviews, officials with the Ministry of Transport, which oversee the Federal Railway Administration, met employees from a boring company last month and were told that the company could find ways to build a tunnel cheaper and more efficiently, according to two people who are familiar with discussions.
The Ministry of Transport spokesman Nathaniel Sizemore confirmed that a boring company was one of several companies that was consulted for the purpose of a new utility agreement. He refused to name other companies.
“It has not been decided on offers,” said Mr. Sizemore, “and Amtrak will follow the standard procedures for offering contracts and subcontractors in coordination with DOT.”
The interviews were concerned about the conflict of interest of Mr. Musk as he juggled with his businesses and his role as President Trump’s supreme advisor. Mr. Musk leads or owns at least six companies, including Tesla and Rocket Company SpaceX. At the same time, he supervised the so -called Ministry of the Government Efficiency, which reduced jobs and resources in federal agencies that regulate its businesses.
In at least a few cases, the conflicts of interest became public. In March, Mr. Trump from Tesla from the White House lawn, while the federal agencies promoted the wider use of the Starlink SpaceX internet service.
Last month, in the middle of investors’ concerns that he had neglected his work in Tesla, Mr. Musk said he would return the time he spent by reducing the cost of Washington.
In its statement, the Ministry of Transport stated that the estimated tunnel price increased by $ 2.5 billion and that Amtrak has not yet found ways to reduce costs.
“The department has interviewed many participating parties in the engineering infrastructure area to understand how to get this project back on the road,” Sizemore said.
Amtrak didn’t have an immediate comment. The boring company and Mr. Musk did not respond to requests for comment.
The Frederick Douglass tunnel is set up to replace the 152 -year -old Baltimore and the Potor Tunnel, the 1.4 miles route along Amtrak’s northeast corridor. According to this is “the only greatest effort to infrastructure” led by amtrak message Last year from the General Inspector Amtrako, who also expressed concern about the costs of balloons and missed terms. The tunnel was expected to be completed by 2035.
Last year Amtrak chose A joint venture between two construction companies, Kiewit and JF Shea, for the construction of the tunnel. Companies did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
Previously Republicans including Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and current Vice President, JD Vance, criticized Awarding the Federal Funds of the Project for “Preference of the Northeast States over the rest of the country”.
Mr. Musk also attacked Amtrak and Other extensive railway projects. In March, he suggested that the federally owned railway be privatized.
“If you are coming from another country, please do not use our national railway,” Mr. Musk said about Amtrako at the March conference with bankers. “It won’t leave you with a very bad impression of America.”
Mr. Musk and his companies have previously considered matters at the Ministry of Transport. After a deadly collision between the helicopter of the army and the commercial beam in January, the Minister of Transport Sean Duffy brought SPACEX employees to the Federal Aviation Air Operation Command Center in Virginia to submit security proposals next month.
Mr. Musk also pushed FAA to cancel the air traffic management contract with Verizon in favor of the Starlink system.
Over the years, Mr. Musk has promoted his own traffic ideas, including Tesla electric cars, SpaceX and Hyperloop missiles, a vacuum tube that powered people and goods at high speed. The Nuring company, which received more than $ 900 million to finance risk capital, has completed several of its proposed US plans.
In 2017 Mr. Musk tweet That he received “verbal government consent” to build an underground hyperloop connecting New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington and claimed that in less than 30 minutes passengers from New York to the capital.
Two years later, the boring company submitted plans to the Ministry for the construction of 35 miles underground loops for cars between Baltimor and Washington and said it could be completed in two years. That project was removed from the boring company site In 2021 and now seems to be dead.
Steve Davis, the leader of the boring company, cooperates with Mr. Musk and Trump’s administration at the Ministry of Efficiency, known as Doge. One of the most trusted lieutenants of the billionaire, Mr. Davis was appointed Mr. Musk to lead a tunnel company in 2018 and be represented to make Mr. Musk’s vision for the federal government.
Mr. Musk was frustrated by a lack of success of the boring company under Mr. Davis, whom he privately criticized for failure to complete the projects. In a recent interview with Tech Word News, Mr. Davis framed his efforts with Doga as an attempt to prevent the country from failing, and said that he and others were “willing to suspend our lives” to help Mr. Muska.
Mr. Davis did not answer the comment.
Alain Delaquérière contributed research.
