Public row breaks out over Honolulu air rail link delays
Friday, 26 Mar 2010 07:56
"We have an obligation to the residents of this state to perform an objective assessment of this project since Hawaii taxpayers, not the federal government, will bear the costs," Gov. Linda Lingle said in a news release. "Claiming that this project will create jobs does not relieve us of our duty to make sure we can afford it over the long term."
The announcement of Gov. Lingle raised heated discussions about further delaying the project. Mayor of Honolulu Mufi Hannemann questioned why Lingle is going through with her analysis when the Federal Transit Administration is examining the project's finances, Honolulu Advertiser announced.
“If she's going to go through this silly exercise, all I say to her is, do it quickly, and make sure you explain to the legislators and the public how much it's going to cost and where that money is going to come from,” the mayor said.
According the Honolulu Advertiser, the city had planned to break ground on the $5.3 billion 20-mile East Kapolei to Ala Moana rail in December. However, construction had been indefinitely delayed by a federal review of environmental impacts as well as the train's impact on runway safety zones at the Honolulu International Airport.
The Federal Aviation Administration officials are rejecting the City’s claim that “newly adopted federal aviation regulations have made the review more complex.”
“Anything that says the delay is due to new FAA regulations is just flat-out wrong,” said FAA spokesman Ian Gregor.
The purpose of the Honolulu High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project is to provide high capacity rapid transit in the highly congested east-west transportation corridor between Kapolei and UH M?noa with a stop at Honolulu International Airport.
Firms seeking the contract must submit their qualifications by an April 6 deadline. Interested firms will need to submit documentation on their expertise, prior work products, and their ability to complete the work within three months of the issuance of the final financial plan for the project.
The announcement of Gov. Lingle raised heated discussions about further delaying the project. Mayor of Honolulu Mufi Hannemann questioned why Lingle is going through with her analysis when the Federal Transit Administration is examining the project's finances, Honolulu Advertiser announced.
“If she's going to go through this silly exercise, all I say to her is, do it quickly, and make sure you explain to the legislators and the public how much it's going to cost and where that money is going to come from,” the mayor said.
According the Honolulu Advertiser, the city had planned to break ground on the $5.3 billion 20-mile East Kapolei to Ala Moana rail in December. However, construction had been indefinitely delayed by a federal review of environmental impacts as well as the train's impact on runway safety zones at the Honolulu International Airport.
The Federal Aviation Administration officials are rejecting the City’s claim that “newly adopted federal aviation regulations have made the review more complex.”
“Anything that says the delay is due to new FAA regulations is just flat-out wrong,” said FAA spokesman Ian Gregor.
The purpose of the Honolulu High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project is to provide high capacity rapid transit in the highly congested east-west transportation corridor between Kapolei and UH M?noa with a stop at Honolulu International Airport.
Firms seeking the contract must submit their qualifications by an April 6 deadline. Interested firms will need to submit documentation on their expertise, prior work products, and their ability to complete the work within three months of the issuance of the final financial plan for the project.
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