There's more bad news for the Las Vegas Monorail. News 3's Tom Hawley reports that although the system was approved as a privately funded train, the monorail may need some taxpayer dollars.

The root of the problem is simple: There aren't enough riders. It's been this way since the monorail opened five years go and the current recession isn't helping.

The original financing included a reserve fund to cover off-projection months. But every month has been off projection and now, the reserve is about tapped out.

This means that next week, for the first time, the monorail will miss a bond payment. Theoretically, the company that insured construction could take over monorail operations, but this is unlikely since they are money people, not train people.

The Las Vegas Monorail is now looking into possible federal loans or other sources of public funding.

There are no plans to shut the system down since farebox revenues cover daily operations and maintenance. The problem now, however, is how to take care of the enormous debt.

The solution isn't clear at this time.

But even as current finances look pretty grim, the Las Vegas Monorail is still pursuing an airport extension, which would boost ridership but also add even more debt.