Face the facts
In recent forums and media interviews, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) is not providing all the facts when discussing the safety aspect of a light rail system that operates on ground level.
As one who oversees safety and security issues for the Honolulu Rail Transit Project, one reason the city selected an elevated rail system is to avoid potential collisions with other vehicles.
The Phoenix light rail system that just opened last year–and runs on the ground–faces this problem. In its first year of service, there have already been 52 documented collisions between trains and cars, the Arizona Republic newspaper reported. In addition, half of those weekly Phoenix collisions occurred along a 1.25-mile stretch running through busy downtown Phoenix. This is identical to the AIA proposal of a train operating ground level through downtown Honolulu. Train reliability is another issue. Service in Houston was halted for hours last month after a bus collided with an at-grade train. Nine people were hurt; fortunately, none of the injuries was life-threatening. The reality is that a street-level system like the AIA proposal will have serious safety issues to contend with. Honolulu’s elevated rail system is the “gold standard” when it comes to reliability, speed and safety. This can only be accomplished with an elevated train separated from the traffic below.
Harvey Berliner, P.E. Honolulu Rail Transit Project Deputy Project Officer for Design and Construction
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