City Council resolution endorses rail transit
By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Transportation Writer
The latest move to build a rail transit line on O'ahu cleared its first hurdle at the City Council yesterday, starting what some Council members said will be a long but essential process.
Members of the Transportation Committee supported a call to develop an above-ground line that could bring residents from West O'ahu into downtown Honolulu. The measure now goes to the full Council for a first vote.
"Fantastic. This is exactly what we needed to send a clear message that we're behind rail," said Council Chairman Gary Okino, who introduced the resolution.
The resolution is designed to show that the city is ready to work with state officials on developing a new rail transit system that is long overdue, Okino said.
"This process started more than 30 years ago when we encouraged growth in central and West O'ahu, but we never provided the infrastructure to connect them to Honolulu," Okino said. "Now's the time for the city to step up and look at the only real solution for the problem — fixed rail."
State Transportation Director Rod Haraga and city Transportation Services Director Cheryl Soon endorsed the concept, saying that they are working together to find a transportation solution that can finally be brought to reality after several false starts in the past two decades.
"We've had plenty of studies in the past. It's time to draw a line in the sand and finally do something," Haraga said.
Soon and Haraga agreed that developing a fixed-rail project for West O'ahu would not necessarily scuttle the city's current plans for a rapid transit system using buses.
Instead, the two have to work in tandem, Haraga said. "If you try to bifurcate the two systems, it just won't work," he said.
Transportation Committee Chairman Nestor Garcia said approval of the fixed-rail resolution should not be seen as a referendum on BRT.
"The time is coming when we will have a vote up or down on the future of BRT, but it is not now," he said.
Soon said the Council's decision is important, but only if members are willing to follow through on developing the plan.
"We need you in the park with us right now," she told Council members. "If you are not going to go the distance, don't bother to appropriate a penny more."
While many details of a rail transit plan, including a route, technology and financing, all need to be worked out, Okino said officials are considering an above-ground line that could run near populated areas along Kamehameha Highway from Kapolei to Iwilei or Downtown Honolulu, with later extensions to Waikiki and the University of Hawaii-Manoa possible. The initial phase of the project could cost an estimated $1.5 billion, Haraga said.
Reach Mike Leidemann at 525-5460 or mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com.
