Monorail officials tout ridership

Friday, Aug. 13, 2004 | 9:40 a.m.

Las Vegas Monorail officials are touting ridership numbers for the system's first 16 days of operation as "strong," despite falling short of initial annual ridership projections.

The company announced Thursday that more than 523,000 riders had boarded the $650 million system, which shuttles passengers from along a 4-mile route from a station at the MGM Grand to one at the Sahara hotel, between July 15 and July 31.

At this rate the monorail would bring in about 11 million passengers a year, roughly 9 million short of the 20 million people planners estimated would board the trains.

Monorail officials defended the numbers, saying they looked forward to a busy convention center to boost the lower-than-projected numbers. The system also is expected to expand its hours -- currently operating from 8 a.m. to midnight -- an extra four hours, company officials said.

The monorail opened July 15, more than six months behind schedule, after battling a series of computer and mechanical glitches that had plagued the system. Bombardier Transportation, the company contracted to build the monorail, and construction partner Granite Construction were held liable in May for fines of $85,000 a day for delays. By early July the companies had reportedly amassed more than $12 million in fines.

An extension of the existing route is expected to break ground next year and another route to McCarran International Airport is in long-term plans.