I've heard various rumors about the LV Monorail over the years (from dealers, taxi drivers, etc). I guess they aren't doing too well right now, and are in danger of going bankrupt. There has also been discussion as to why the thing was built in such a far-out location, and I was told that the taxi union did not want to have the monorail competing with their business to/from McCarran Airport. I don't know if any of this is true, but that's what I have heard. There is still some talk of the monorail being extended to the airport, but I'll believe it when I see it.

As recently as last year, all of the monorail trains were "wrapped" in ads (Vegas.com, Sprint, etc, etc), but these days, it seems like almost all of them are just white with no writing or ads on them at all.

One thing I get a kick out of when riding the LV monorail is the automated message that plays in the cars when you're traveling between stations. Each segment has a different message and different trivia. On the long segment as you go between the Convention Center and Harrah's/Imperial Palace, the announcement goes something like this:

"You are traveling on the Las Vegas Monorail, and you are getting an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at all of the major hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, that other visitors will never see".

I just crack up when I hear that, because it's basically a view of dumpsters and parking lots.