Tunnel Boring Company at Universal Orlando: 18 Months of Work

February 11, 2026, will remain an important date for Universal Orlando: the Shingle Creek Transit & Utility Community Development District has officially designated The Boring Company as the best bidder for a bidirectional tunnel project connecting the resort’s north campus to Universal Epic Universe. The tender documents reveal an ambitious transport system based on autonomous Tesla vehicles, with a tight 18-month schedule.

What particularly fascinates me about this announcement is that it’s the first concrete application of The Boring Company’s technology in the theme park world. Let’s dive into the technical details that have just been unveiled.

The Vote That Formalizes the Project: Universal Orlando Trusts The Boring Company

The vote on February 11, 2026, is not just a mere administrative formality. The Shingle Creek Transit & Utility Community Development District selected The Boring Company after a rigorous evaluation process, placing it at the top of the bidders.

The publication of the tender documents offers us rare transparency on the technical aspects of the project. For Universal, the stakes are high: improve mobility between two distant campuses while offering a futuristic experience to visitors.

What strikes me is the signal sent to the entertainment industry: after the success of the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop, The Boring Company proves it can adapt its technology to high-traffic tourist environments. It’s a real-world test for Elon Musk’s company.

Tunnel Architecture: Two Tubes, 18 Months of Work, and Technical Challenges

Bidirectional Configuration and Completion Schedule

The project relies on two distinct tunnels, one for each direction of travel, thus optimizing traffic flow. This bidirectional tunnel configuration is a signature of The Boring Company, which prioritizes safety and operational efficiency.

The announced schedule is ambitious: 18 months divided into three distinct phases. First, obtaining permits, then detailed design, and finally, construction itself. To meet this deadline, several boring machines will be deployed simultaneously.

Temporary infrastructure will need to be installed: storage areas for excavated materials, stormwater management systems. This is a major logistical undertaking, but the company already has its proprietary drilling equipment immediately available, which eliminates external rental delays.

The Geological Challenge of Central Florida

Here, I must pause on a critical aspect: Florida’s geology is nothing like Las Vegas’. Orlando has a high water table, which seriously complicates drilling and tunnel waterproofing.

Even more concerning, the region’s limestone soils are known for their instability. Sinkholes (sudden ground collapses typical of karst areas) represent a real risk that cannot be ignored. This is why The Boring Company plans to recruit a specialized local geotechnical firm.

What leaves me perplexed in the current documents is the absence of a detailed mitigation plan for geological risks specific to Florida. Comparing Vegas (stable desert soil) and Orlando (complex karst geology) highlights a challenge of a completely different magnitude. I hope that subsequent phases will provide these details.

A Seasoned Team and Specialized Subcontractors

The Boring Company isn’t starting from scratch. The company has assembled a dedicated team of 8 internal specialists: tunnel, structural, and machine engineers. This core team builds on the experience gained at the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop.

Six subcontractors have already been identified for critical areas: fire protection, communications, soil treatment, concrete civil engineering, electrical systems, and ventilation. This structure shows an operational maturity far different from the company’s experimental beginnings.

The major strategic advantage remains the immediately available proprietary drilling equipment. No need to negotiate with external rental companies or wait for equipment availability, as was the case during the first Cybertruck tests in The Boring Company’s tunnels. Everything is ready to start as soon as permits are obtained.

An “On-Demand” Transport System Inspired by the Las Vegas Loop

Forget traditional subways with fixed schedules. The model developed by The Boring Company is based on a fully flexible on-demand system. Tesla vehicles are dispatched in real-time according to passenger needs.

Concretely, you request a trip, a vehicle arrives, and takes you directly to your destination without intermediate stops. Point-to-point, with no fixed route. This is the system already operational in the Las Vegas Loop, but adapted to the constraints of a theme park.

The central element of this concept is autonomous driving via FSD (Full Self-Driving). Without a human driver, the system can adjust its fleet in real-time. The documents also mention the Robovan, a configurable vehicle that can transport passengers OR freight.

This dynamically adjustable capacity is great in theory: during off-peak hours, fewer vehicles circulate; at peak times, the full fleet is mobilized. Zero energy waste on empty trips. It remains to be seen how it will work with the massive crowds typical of Universal Orlando.

Underground or Surface Stations: Architectural Flexibility Serving the Visitor Experience

The tender documents reveal two options for station locations. Underground stations offer maximum discretion and optimal landscape integration, while surface stations significantly reduce construction costs.

In both cases, access to the traffic tunnels is via inclined access ramps. What particularly interests me is the potential for landscape integration according to Universal’s visual identity. In Vegas, the stations are purely functional; here, one could imagine “theming” worthy of Disney parks.

Architectural flexibility also provides for a possible future extension of the network to other areas of the resort, as with the tunnel project to the Gigafactory Nevada. Universal could thus gradually develop a true interconnected underground transport network.

What These Technical Documents Reveal (and Conceal)

Let’s be honest: these documents provide reassuring answers, but also leave gray areas that cannot be ignored.

On the positive side, the 18-month schedule is defined with three clear phases, the team is structured and experienced, and the technology has been proven in Las Vegas with several million trips completed. The immediately available proprietary equipment eliminates a critical factor for delays.

But here are the questions that bother me: where is the detailed mitigation plan for geological risks specific to Florida? What will be the actual hourly capacity of the system? How many visitors can be transported during peak hours?

Environmental integration remains vague: what impact on local wildlife? How to manage vibrations? The total cost is not publicly disclosed. And above all, how will the system handle the massive peak crowds of a theme park, which are much more irregular than the relatively constant flow of the Vegas Convention Center?

I maintain controlled optimism about this project. The Boring Company has proven its ability to dig tunnels efficiently and operate autonomous Teslas within them. But Orlando represents a qualitative leap in terms of geological and operational complexity. The coming months will tell us if the company can meet this challenge with the complete technical details necessary for the project’s success.