Headline Roundup • August 6th, 2025
Plans for Tesla Tunnel in Nashville Receive Mixed Responses from Residents
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced that Elon Musk’s Boring Company will build an underground tunnel to connect downtown Nashville to the airport.
The Details: The tunnel, called “Music City Loop,” will allow Tesla vehicles to transport passengers from the city’s downtown to the airport in approximately 8 minutes. The commute between those locations typically takes about 15 minutes by car or over an hour on public transit. The construction of the tunnel will not use tax dollars, though it is unclear how much it will cost for passengers to use the tunnel.
Concern from Locals: Some Nashville residents have expressed concern for the environmental impact of drilling into the limestone, which the Boring Company’s president acknowledged makes the city a “tough place to tunnel.” Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-TN) said, “If Nashville really wants to lead, we should be investing in public transit that serves everyone. Not building vanity projects for billionaires that sidestep regulation and extract value from our communities without putting anything meaningful back.”
Support from State Officials: State officials released a statement, writing, “The Music City Loop will remove thousands of vehicles from surface roads each day, easing traffic congestion while creating numerous job opportunities for Tennesseans."
How the Media Covered It: New York Times (Lean Left bias) focused on pushback from residents, writing that “state leaders fast-tracked plans by Elon Musk’s company for a tunnel to Nashville’s airport, ignoring the city’s concerns.” The Daily Wire (Right) highlighted positive responses from state and federal officials, including Lee, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty (R-TN). The Tennessean (Center) included positive and negative perspectives from local residents and tourists to the downtown area as well as highlighted previous disputes relating to the Nashville airport in recent years.
Written by the AllSides staff (of humans). Learn more. Support our mission. Suggest an improvement to this summary.
Featured Coverage of this Story
Maansi Srivastava for The New York Times Emily Cochrane
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, already faces backlash over his company’s giant supercomputer project in Memphis. Now, another project under his business empire has angered residents in Tennessee’s capital, where state officials cleared the way on Thursday for a 10-mile tunnel to be dug under Nashville.
The project by the Boring Company, Mr. Musk’s private tunneling venture, would connect downtown Nashville and the city’s airport. Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, and other state leaders announced it this week, with little input from local lawmakers and residents, who raised objections to...
It's official. Elon Musk's The Boring Company plans to build a high-speed tunnel from Nashville International Airport to downtown.
The name will be the Music City Loop.
"Nashville was selected by The Boring Company for its rapid growth, strong economic potential and dedication to embracing smart, forward-looking infrastructure," state officials said in a statement. "The Music City Loop will remove thousands of vehicles from surface roads each day, easing traffic congestion while creating numerous job opportunities for Tennesseans."
Getty Images
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced Monday that the state would be partnering with Elon Musk’s Boring Company to build an underground tunnel connecting the Nashville airport to the city’s downtown.
The project will be called the “Music City Loop” and will connect Nashville International Airport to the heart of the city’s entertainment district via an underground tunnel. Using electric vehicles, the trip will take about eight minutes, according to the Boring Company.
AllSides Picks
Blog
Keeping Kids Safe Online?: Understanding the Debate Over AI Age Verification
The Alliance for Civic Engagement
May 11th, 2026
Red Blue Translator
Trolls
Red Blue Translator
