WOW … This evening (December 16), we found out that Governor Neil Abercrombie accepted the Final EIS for the Honolulu Rail Transit project.
Good news for the many rail supporters who were put on hold for such a long time by the former administration (which left office on December 6).
Moving relatively quickly, Governor Abercrombie signed off on the EIS which is a giant step forward and will result in the City finally being able to break ground, create jobs move us toward a solution that will ease the traffic for thousands of West Oahu residents.
This is an excerpt of a statement issued by Governor: "The role of the state in this step of approving the environmental impact statement for Honolulu’s rail transit system is to ensure that all economic, social and environmental risks have been properly addressed under law. After a thorough review by and consulting with the state Office of Environmental Quality Control, I conclude the City and County of Honolulu has met these obligations. I continue to support a transit system in Oahu. Projects associated with it will be central to Oahu’s future development."
According to Mayor Peter Carlisle in a news release,“The rail project EIS has been done prudently and is in compliance with state environmental law.”
In a nutshell - Honolulu Rail Transit is a 20-mile elevated rail line that will connect West Oahu with downtown Honolulu and Ala Moana. The system features 200-foot-long electric, steel-wheel trains capable of carrying more than 300 passengers each. Trains can carry more than 6,000 riders per hour (One 300-passenger train can relieve the freeway of 200 cars every three minutes during morning rush hour).
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