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Elon Musk’s Boring Co. will ‘try’ to build tunnel in this Tennessee town

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Elon Musk’s Boring Co. will ‘try’ to build tunnel in this Tennessee town


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  • New Orleans, Baltimore, and Dallas were chosen as winners in Boring Co. contest pending feasibility studies.
  • The Boring Company may still pursue a utility tunnel project in Hendersonville, Tennessee.

East Tennessee will not get a tunnel from billionaire Elon Musk’s The Boring Company.

Musk’s tunneling company announced which three cities won a “free” one-mile underground tunnel in the “Tunnel Vision Challenge.” Three Tennessee cities were nominated and among the contest finalists: Gatlinburg, Knoxville and Hendersonville.

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While no Tennessee town was chosen to get a Tesla Tunnel for transportation, Musk’s company said in a March 24 post on X, formerly Twitter, that it would “try” to burrow a utility tunnel in Hendersonville anyway.

“IN ADDITION, there were multiple other projects that TBC thought were so compelling that we are going to continue to work with the entrants and try to get them built,” The Boring Co. post said.

The announcement comes while Tennessee legislators fight to get more legal authority and clarity over underground transit construction.

Here’s what to know.

Which cities will get a ‘Tesla Tunnel’?

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The Boring Co. announced that the “Tunnel Vision Challenge” winners are a NOLA Loop in New Orleans, a Ravens Loop in Baltimore and a University Hills Loop in Dallas.

Despite the contest, New Orleans, Baltimore and Dallas are not guaranteed a loop. Individuals could nominate their community without the consent or knowledge of local government officials, as happened in Knoxville.

The three identified communities will now undergo a diligence process to determine the feasibility of the project. This includes meetings with elected officials, geotechnical borings and utility and subsurface infra investigation, according to The Boring Co.

What is Elon Musk’s tunnel idea?

The Boring Co. is developing tunnels in cities across the United States as a way of mitigating traffic. The privately-owned tunnels are commercialized to allow anyone to ride the direct route in a Tesla for a fee.

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“Tunnels minimize usage of valuable surface land and do not conflict with existing transportation systems,” reads a description on The Boring Co. website. “A large network of tunnels can alleviate congestion in any city; no matter how large a city grows, more levels of tunnels can be added.”

Musk’s company opened the first Loop in Las Vegas in 2021.

There are advantages to the underground tunnel network; however, there are limited government regulations to control the tunnel system since it is privately owned.

Tennessee representatives have proposed expanding government oversight of underground projects. Senate Bill 2205, dubbed The Subterranean Transportation Infrastructure Coordination Act, would create an 11-member authority board to take absolute control of all future state dealings with “subterranean transit projects,” including the Music City Loop and any future tunnels in the Volunteer State.

Not all tunnels are used for passenger transportation, however. Of existing tunnels, the Cybertunnel in Austin, Texas, was built at the Tesla Gigafactory to transport the new cars to a staging area. There are also several “research and development” tunnels across Texas and California.

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The Boring Co. underground transportation system also could be used for utilities or pedestrians, as proposed among the 16 Tunnel Vision Challenge finalist cities.

What cities have Tesla tunnels?

In reality, a few cities currently have Boring Co. tunnels. Las Vegas undoubtedly has the largest tunnel used for underground transportation. Here’s which cities have Boring Co. tunnels for transportation or have them planned or in the works, according to the company website. Note that this list excludes research and development tunnels.

  • Las Vegas: Opened in 2021
  • Nashville: Under construction
  • Austin, Texas: Open, used to transport new cybertrucks off the production line.
  • Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Under contract

Allison Kiehl covers trending and breaking news from Knoxville for the Tennessee Connect Team. Email: allison.kiehl@knoxnews.com

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Sweet 16, bitter history for Tennessee. Can Vols break through in 2026?

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Sweet 16, bitter history for Tennessee. Can Vols break through in 2026?


Tennessee basketball has made it to the Sweet 16 a dozen times, but only a fourth of those appearances ended with a victory sending the Vols to the next round. For years, this pivotal tournament round has felt like a barrier the Vols couldn’t clear − and, with more sour moments than sweet, some called it a Tennessee curse.

History looms large over Tennessee as the No. 6 seed Vols (24-11) prepare to face No. 2 Iowa State (29-7) at 10:10 p.m. March 27. Tennessee has earned March Madness berths 28 times, including for the 2026 tournament.

Tennessee’s only Elite Eight appearance prior to Rick Barnes becoming coach in 2015 came under Bruce Pearl in 2010. Barnes began to turn Tennessee around in the subsequent years, culminating with back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in 2024 and 2025.

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Despite claiming the SEC Tournament title five times, Tennessee has never made it to the Final Four. The Vols are hopeful 2026 is the year that changes.

The March 27 game will be Tennessee’s fourth consecutive Sweet 16 appearance under Barnes. The Vols are 3-8 in this round of the tournament, which it reached for the first time in 1967:

  • 1967: Dayton 53, Tennessee 52
  • 1981: (1) Virginia 62, (4) Tennessee 48
  • 2000: (8) North Carolina 74, (4) Tennessee 69
  • 2007: (1) Ohio State 85, (5) Tennessee 84
  • 2008: (3) Louisville 79, (2) Tennessee 60
  • 2010: (6) Tennessee 76, (2) Ohio State 73
  • 2014: (2) Michigan 73, (11) Tennessee 71
  • 2019: (3) Purdue 99, (2) Tennessee 94 (OT)
  • 2023: (9) Florida Atlantic 62, (4) Tennessee 55
  • 2024: (2) Tennessee 82, (3) Creighton 75
  • 2025: (2) Tennessee 78, (3) Kentucky 65

The historic first Sweet 16 win in 2010 ended with a 76-73 victory over Ohio State. The Vols trailed by three points heading into halftime before taking and sustaining the lead toward the end of the game.

Tennessee went on to lose by just one point in the Elite Eight versus Michigan State in the 2010 tournament.

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“It’s going to stick with us,” guard Bobby Maze said at the time, according to Knox News archives. “Any time we watch college games or during tournament time, we’ll always come back to that very moment where we were just too short.”

From there, Tennessee would spend more than a decade searching for another Sweet 16 win.

It came in 2024 when the Vols beat Creighton 82-75 to advance to the Elite Eight. Dalton Knecht was the leading scorer for Tennessee, finishing the game with 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals. Once again, the Vols couldn’t advance to the Final Four, dropping their next game to tournament runner-up Purdue 72-66.

Tennessee returned to the Sweet 16 in 2025 and defeated Kentucky 78-65 to earn consecutive Elite Eight appearances. Zakai Zeigler ended the game with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Chaz Lanier wasn’t far behind with 17 points. The Vols again dropped the Elite Eight game to what ended up being the tournament’s runner-up, Houston, 69-50.

The Vols are 33-28 all time in the NCAA Tournament, including a 14-7 record under Barnes.

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Knox News reporter Joanna Hayes covers restaurants and retail for the business growth and development team. Email: joanna.hayes@knoxnews.comInstagram: @knoxeat65Sign up for Joanna’s Eat65 email newsletter to get the latest drink and dining news, as well as restaurant recommendations, at knoxnews.com/newsletters.

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Drivers charged with drag racing after Tennessee trooper clocked speeds over 100 mph

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Drivers charged with drag racing after Tennessee trooper clocked speeds over 100 mph


2 young adults are facing charges for impaired driving and drag racing after a Tennessee State Trooper clocked them going more than 100 mph down I-24 Monday night, an affidavit says.

The affidavit says a THP trooper was on patrol traveling east on I-24 when a black two-door Infiniti and a silver BMW SUV passed him “at well over 100 MPH.”

The trooper attempted to stop both vehicles, but they continued down the roadway.

The affidavit says both vehicles eventually pulled to the right shoulder near Exit 181.

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The trooper arrested both drivers, identified as 20-year-old Rolando Martinez and 19-year-old Lucas Turner, for drag racing and reckless driving.

While inventorying the silver BMW, the affidavit says a case of beer was found in the back seat, along with beers strewn throughout the vehicle.

The arrest report says the trooper smelled alcohol coming from both drivers.

Turner consented to standardized field sobriety tests and a blood test. The report says he was above the legal limit of .02.

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Martinez completed half of the HGN test and refused further sobriety testing, but consented to a blood test. The trooper also believed he was above the legal limit.



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Tennessee Police Investigating Alleged Assault Involving ‘Reacher’ Star Alan Ritchson

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Tennessee Police Investigating Alleged Assault Involving ‘Reacher’ Star Alan Ritchson


Police officers in the Nashville suburb of Brentwood, Tennessee are currently investigating an alleged assault that occurred over the weekend involving Reacher star Alan Ritchson.

TMZ broke the story by publishing a video that reportedly features Ritchson in an altercation with a neighbor named Ronnie Taylor. The man said that the situation unfolded over two days, beginning on Saturday when he claimed he witnessed Ritchson speeding through the neighborhood on a motorcycle causing a disturbance. To show his displeasure, Taylor claims he raised a middle finger to Ritchson and the actor returned the gesture.

Then on Sunday, Taylor tells TMZ that he spotted Ritchson on his motorcycle again, this time joined by two individuals who are believed to be the actor’s young sons, also on motorbikes. Taylor claims that he asked Ritchson, “Can you fucking stop this please?”, at which point the situation allegedly turned physical. Ritchson is seen in the edited clip hitting Taylor in the grass of a front lawn. Ritchson’s green Kawasaki motorcycle is in the street while the two individuals witness the altercation from their motorbikes.

The clip, first published by TMZ on Sunday, picks up as Taylor is already on the ground. But in an interview with TMZ, he admitted that he instigated the physical confrontation by shoving Ritchson first. He also reportedly ran into the street to confront Ritchson, who then fell off his motorcycle and suffered “cuts and bruises” and a finger injury, per TMZ. The outlet also reported that Taylor “dared Alan to hit him” while Ritchson was still on the ground though the actor tried to leave the scene until he was shoved by Taylor. Additional footage of the incident is said to show a more clear picture of happened.

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The Hollywood Reporter confirmed with Brentwood Police Captain Steve Pepin that an investigation is currently underway though “no arrests have been made” in the case. The investigation is expected to continue for several days.

Ritchson, a known motorcycle enthusiast who posed on a Ducati for a THR cover story in 2024, is back in the United States after filming back to back movies in Australia and New Zealand. He starred in Netflix’s War Machine, which just debuted on the streamer, for filmmaker Patrick Hughes. They reunited Down Under for a project inspired by the life of Navy SEAL Mike Thornton which was recently filming.

Reps for Ritchson have yet to comment.

Monday, March 23, 2:43 p.m.: Updated to include new comments from Ronnie Taylor from his live interview with TMZ.



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