Convention-goers to the upcoming CES and NAB shows might be forgiven for greeting this news with skepticism. But at least for now, it looks like the $650 million Las Vegas monorail will be running for the 2005 conventions.
The system had failed to open in time for last year's NAB show, then opened in July only to shut down again in September due to safety and maintenance problems. It reopened over the Christmas holiday, according to the Washington Post. A free-ride promotion running this week helped draw a reported 45,000 riders on Dec. 25.
"It's one of the most embarrassing things ever to happen to this city," the Post quotes a tourism trade publisher in Las Vegas saying of the monorail's problems to date, including parts falling off and doors opening on the wrong side, exposing passengers to a potential fall. No one has been hurt.
According to the monorail Web site, the initial 4-mile route stops at six stations in addition to the Las Vegas Convention Center. They are MGM Grand; Bally's/Paris; Flamingo/Caesars Palace; Harrah's/Imperial Palace; Las Vegas Hilton; and the Sahara. A single ride is $3. A one-day pass is $10.
(Radio World)
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