Rail shibai
This letter is in response to the Weekly’s transportation story, “On the fast track,” (10/28). For the naysayers, it is all very well to claim that the Honolulu Rail system as planned is a bit of a fraud.
It is very easy to reiterate the various rail, bus rapid-transit, magnet-rail, highway, and tollway options that could have been the finalized product.
However, there are times when rehashing a particular option really is another delaying tactic. When an alternative is presented at this stage in the process, it becomes extremely suspect.
Upon first examination, the Kamehameha Schools street trolley plan looks nice and invigorating a blast of fresh air into a seemingly stifling concrete jungle. When fully read, the plan is not so clear and becomes a bit of a dull read with the regurgitation of unworkable ideas.
Operating a street trolley system as envisioned by the Kamehameha plan is untenable in present-day Honolulu. The effect upon car and bus traffic would increase congestion not to mention the problem of potential trolley car collisions.
The only possible way to mitigate this effect would be to carve out exclusive trolley corridors separated from car and bus traffic as is done with certain sections of Boston’s Green Line or San Francisco’s Muni system. One must keep in mind that both of those systems run underground to a great extent when within their respective urban cores. Such a method would not mitigate the traffic problems on Kapiolani, rather such a reduction in lanes would exacerbate the issue.
The elevated system as proposed by Mayor Mufi Hannemann is a modern system based upon ideas that have worked well in the past. There are elevated systems in Singapore, Paris, Chicago, and London. One is able to walk around Paris or London whilst shopping for groceries, dropping the kids off for childcare or even when seeing one’s dentist. There is no strip mall parking lot to navigate through. One is able to pop into the L in Chicago and get off at O’Hare airport. Sure, there are automobile traffic issues, but these are not mixed into the rail system. When there is a car accident on I-94, you are still able to get across town.
To accomplish the persistent goals of providing an alternative transportation system, getting people out of their cars, and reducing the amount of potential future traffic congestion, an elevated system is the most cost-effective method.
We need to stick with the plan that the mayor has proposed. It has been in the planning stages for over 40 years. It is not something that has been simply trashed together without regard to the consequences.
Edward Smith
Honolulu
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