Without addressing it directly, the mayor implies that Speaker Saiki's letter regarding simultaneous execution of these projects was misleading to the public. Read More »
With the precarious financial nature of the Rail project—just recently bailed out by the state—and the city's history of mismanaging it, the Speaker of the House today told Mayor Caldwell that the city should focus on getting its priority project under control before starting on ancillary ones. Read More »
How the rumble over Rail has fractured relationships between legislators, between O‘ahu and neighbor island constituents, and dangerously eroded trust in our representative democracy. Read More »
"Salvage the Rail" group releases alternative Honolulu route map for a street level plan that would save taxpayers from a GET surcharge extension Read More »
Errors include the mixing of accrual basis and cash basis numbers; double counting $298 million in revenue; three different amounts for expenditures;
flaws in projected ridership numbers; and a $140 million adding error, among others. More at What Natalie Thinks »
All nine Honolulu council members and the mayor owe their positions, in large part, to donors with strong ties to Hawaii’s powerful land development interests. Read More »
With auto sales, population and tourism numbers projected to continue to rise rapidly, how effective will rail actually be in reducing congestion on Honolulu roads? Read More »
Board members overseeing the city’s rail project Thursday approved its largest capital budget yet, clearing rail officials to sign $1.56 billion in contracts in the coming fiscal year to build the project. More at Star-Advertiser »
Hardline supporters or opponents of this rail plan have an easy choice on Tuesday. But moderates – such as myself – who want mass transit yet oppose the specifics of this rail plan are in a difficult position. Read More »
More human remains, including an intact burial, were found Monday as the HART archaeological inventory survey continued along the Honolulu rail route. More at KHON »
The Hawaii Supreme Court on Thursday denied a City and County of Honolulu motion for the high court to reconsider its ruling on the city’s controversial $5.16 billion rail project.
Dennis Camire, reporting for the Honolulu Star-Advertiser:
"We look forward to signing a full funding agreement … by the end of the calendar year, barring any unforeseen complications," [FTA spokesperson] Farber said.
Paulette Kaleikini, plaintiff in the iwi lawsuit which has temporarily stopped rail work, has until Friday to respond to a city motion to keep construction going. More at Pacific Business News »
The city today requested that the Supreme Court reconsider its decision that rail archaeological studies must be completed before rail construction begins. More at Pacific Business News »
Is the shutdown of work on the Rail only a blip in the grand scenario? Or is it the first tangible evidence that the project is unraveling? Is it a costly digression? Or the beginning of the end?
Read More »
On Friday, the state Supreme Court found that the city broke state law when it divided an archeological inventory survey of the 20-mile rail route into four segments. Read More »
Civil Beat is reporting that Cayetano may have 55% of the Honolulu electoral set to send him to Honolulu Hale. It's pretty amazing that the former Governor's numbers are this good, given the institutional backing of the pro-rail camps (and his track record as governor). More at Civil Beat »
"This is the brains, and the trains. The maintenance facility is where we house the 80 trains. We will maintain them and it will also be our operation control center," said HART Executive Director Dan Grabauskas.
Any changes to the elevated platforms will likely be detailed in the latest Project Management Oversight Contractor report, which is due out this week.
To build more housing for more commuters appears to double down on a failed strategy. Even with rail, these developments would add more cars and congestion than we have today.
“This is the most mismanaged project in 28 years of office,” Cayetano said today after reading several of the emails to the media. He is running for mayor in 2012, and critical of how his opponents, Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle, and former city Managing Director Kirk Caldwell, managed the project.
Emilio Farinas has lived in his home on the Waiawa Banana Patch for 12 years. His family's home is one of 10 located on the area selected for a Park-and-Ride facility as part of the Honolulu Rail Transit plan. Read More »
