Is it EVER the right decision to take the tunnel?

I know that it is never the right plan to let your taxi driver take the airport tunnel when you are going to the Strip, but what about Downtown, or the Rio/Palms?

Does it ever make sense to let the driver take the tunnel?

During rush hour it can be a good option to get to/from Rio.

Taxi driver took the tunnel leaving Rio to airport, I asked him why: He said we could take the short route and sit in traffic trying to cross the strip, or the longer tunnel route and have me sitting at my gate.

The stop lights in Vegas are some of the longest in the U.S. If the strip is bumper to bumper and there is a lot of traffic on the streets running parallel to the strip, it seems like the tunnel is excellent if you have to get to the Northern part of the strip or to downtown.

Of course if you are ever headed to Green Valley Ranch, M Resort, or South Point, the tunnel to the 215 is probably the best way to go.

Excellent, for I have wanted to know too.

Sometimes, my better logic said, too much strip traffic, and longer tunnel is better... maybe?

We have always told the driver to go down Paradise (sp?), and if you do MAPBLAST.COM and then eye bird level, you will see the tunnel, and Paradise, and why it is no much longer. It is so huge, it is funny!

For fun and giggles, do this, and you will see what I said above.

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Anyway, at some point, there has to be an advantage to the Tunnel, but only in limited situations.

For us to Flamingo, it is Paradise.

For us to Airport, it is Paradise...

I have read here on LVA forums, most taxi drivers just laugh when you say no tunnel, easy said, easy done.

But there are been other reports (few) that is not always the case. Best advice I have seen on this...

Program into your phone BEFORE going to LV, the Taxi Authority number.

If there is ever a problem, from what I read, once you start calling them, the Taxi driver will comply without further insults to you. But these are rare cases, yet they do happen.

So just do it, into your phone as part of the pre packing trip process, then enjoy your WONDERFUL
LV experience!!!

I understand that the tunnel is often faster, but it is also more expensive. For example, the mileage to downtown using Paradise is almost half the mileage if you take the tunnel. Under optimal conditions, that's a fare difference of almost $15.00.

And yes, I know that the cost for standing in traffic is $.50 per minute. But is traffic ever that bad on Paradise? Maybe I've just been lucky. Then again, we were once stuck in a traffic jam on the highway for 20 minutes, making the cab ride from the airport to downtown crazily expensive.

If you were traveling from McCarran to the Strat, it would be 5 miles further taking the tunnel route (per Google).

My taxi driver took the tunnel to get to the Wynn. We negotiated the fare once we arrived at the hotel. Man, the tunnel takes you so far from your destination.

The one and only time I was tunneled, once we got straightened out I couldn't believe how far to the NORTH Mandalay Bay appeared. And I was headed to Bally's! ... Fare was like $23. He settled for $15 and no tip.

I've been screwed by the tunnel route too, forgot to tell the driver "No"... I was going to the Palazzo. Said something to him about taking Koval, only response in broken English was "konstuction"... BS!!