Behold: Elon Musk's First Tunnel

Elon Musk released a preview of the Boring Company's first underground tunnel last week, promising that the public will be able to ride through the tunnel in the coming months.

As reported by Alene Tchekmedyian, Musk posted a sped-up video of a ride through the tunnel on Instagram.

First Boring Company tunnel under LA almost done! Pending final regulatory approvals, we will be offering free rides to the public in a few months. Super huge thanks to everyone that helped with this project. Strong support from public, elected officials & regulators is critical to success. As mentioned in prior posts, once fully operational (demo system rides will be free), the system will always give priority to pods for pedestrians & cyclists for less than the cost of a bus ticket.

A post shared by Elon Musk (@elonmusk) on May 10, 2018 at 6:49pm PDT

Tchekmedyian provides additional background on the project, including the plans for more of the same in other parts of the city, especially after the "City Council's public works committee last month unanimously approved an environmental review exemption for a tunnel that could run 2.7 miles through West Los Angeles, giving a space for Boring Co. engineers to build and test the proposed transportation technology." The location of the tunnel in the video released last week wasn't revealed, but it's believed that Musk has been tunneling in the Hawthorne area, near where SpaceX is located.

An article by Laura J. Nelson and David Zahniser, however, follows up on the sensational tunnel reveal of the Hawthorne with a dose of reality for Musk's boring ambitions along the 2.7-mile route along the Sepulveda corridor.

Two neighborhood groups have filed a lawsuit over the city of Los Angeles' proposal to fast-track the project by exempting it from environmental review. In Culver City, where the Sepulveda tunnel could end, officials are contemplating their own court challenge. And debate continues over the effect Musk's transportation initiative could have on surface traffic, economic equity and the environment.

Musk's Instagram post also picked up the attention of the national tech media, as evidenced by this article by Sara Salinas.