Elon Musk tends to stoke the ire of transit advocates. And now his “Boring Company” proposal to connect L.A. Metro Rail subway stops with Dodger Stadium via a private tunnel has raised some new hackles. As Jenna Chandler at LA Curbed described:

The concept involves transporting passengers in electric-powered, autonomous pods (what the company calls “skates”) that zip through underground tunnels at speeds of 125 to 150 miles per hour.

The “skates” would carry between eight and 16 passengers (far fewer than a subway car) and would be lowered underground from street-level docking stations called “Loop lifts.”

Some transit advocates reacted with skepticism (including me, as I related to KNX Radio yesterday) about the technical feasibility and cost. Alyssa Walker at Curbed also laid out some sensible alternatives, including expanded bus and pedestrian access to the stadium as well as more regional shuttles.

Based on some of the social media commentary around the proposal, it’s clear that there is no love lost among transit advocates and all things Musk. But given that his Dodger Stadium plan would be privately funded and actually bolster the existing rail transit network, why the animosity?

Some theories for this mistrust could be that transit advocates:

1. Feel threatened by private forms of transport that they view as actual or perceived competition with public transit.
2. Don’t like the opportunity cost of city officials prioritizing private approaches instead of advocating (and spending staff time) on public transit solutions.
3. Don’t trust Musk, given his previous bashing of public transit and plans to move private vehicles via an underground tunneling network.
4. Generally don’t like automobiles, and Musk’s work to popularize zero-emission vehicles removes a powerful anti-car argument about their air quality impacts.

The conflict is unfortunate from my perspective, because Musk’s proposals at least so far don’t require any public investment and could lead to some interesting innovation that benefits everyone, including transit users. And his work to promote electric vehicles not only has critical climate benefits but has helped public transit by bringing down the costs of battery-powered buses.

Meanwhile, we’ll see how the Dodger Stadium proposal moves forward, if at all. As long as no public dollars are involved, I see no downside.