The U.S. government has once again approached Elon Musk. The Federal Railroad Administration has contacted The Boring Company (TBC), the tunneling firm owned by the tech billionaire, to brainstorm on a multi-billion-dollar project by railway company Amtrak. This is not the first time Musk has been involved in large-scale government projects. On the contrary: government contracts and subsidies have played a key role in the rise of his companies.
Officials from the Department of Transportation, which oversees the national railway company, have spoken with TBC employees. The company has been enlisted to assess whether it can assist with a multi-billion-dollar railway project. Within the so-called Amtrak route, the Frederick Douglass Tunnel is being built to connect Baltimore with Washington and Virginia. The development was initially estimated to cost $6 billion, but Amtrak now expects it could rise to $8.5 billion.
The discussions raise concerns about Musk's conflicts of interest. The tech billionaire leads or owns at least six companies, including Tesla and SpaceX. At the same time, he oversees the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which is responsible for reducing government spending.