Continuing Train of Thought on Congestion

Yesterday we cited a statistic from the Alternatives Analysis (AA), a document that’s recommended reading for anyone in search of factual information about Honolulu’s steel wheel system. The stat: There will be 11 percent fewer Vehicle Hours of Delay with transit than without it (see Page 3-22 in the AA).

Continuing that thought, the AA also notes that simply increasing the number of buses on the roads – the alternative that rail critics often propose – would reduce future traffic congestion by only 1.3 percent.

And then there’s the HOT Lanes alternative, another favorite of rail’s critics. When you build more highways into town to accommodate more vehicles, the only conceivable result in increased road congestion. As the AA says on Page 3-13:

“Nimitz Highways is already projected to be over capacity at this point (Pacific Street, where the elevated highway’s vehicles would return to surface streets), and the addition of high volumes of traffic exiting and entering the managed lanes would create increased congestion and high levels of delay for all vehicles using the facility, including buses. Hence, much of the time saved on the managed lane itself would be negated by the time spent in congestion leading up to the managed lane as well as exiting the lanes at their Downtown terminus.”

It’s this kind of detailed analysis that illuminates the issues and dispels the myths in the debate on rail. It can be heavy reading but worth the effort to understand what the Honolulu Rail Transit program is all about.

Community Update Meetings

Here’s the schedule for the remaining Community Update meetings on the Honolulu Rail Transit Project:

• Tuesday, 10/21 – 6 to 8, Blaisdell – Hawaii Suite, 777 Ward Avenue, Honolulu.
• Wednesday, 10/22 – 6 to 8, Farrington High School, 1564 North King Street, Honolulu.
• Thursday, 10/23 – 6 to 8, Mililani Waena Elementary, 95-502 Kipapa Drive, Mililani.