Bring Rail Down to Street Level, Says Honolulu Gov.

Governor Linda Lingle is proposing that the state bring the state's elevated rail project down to the ground to save costs, considering Hawai'i's budget problems.

1 minute read

January 17, 2010, 9:00 AM PST

By Tim Halbur


The 20-mile rail project is the largest infrastructure project in the state's history, and Gov. Lingle is concerned that it could jeopardize the state's financial standing.

As reported by Sean Hao, Gov. Lingle said, "A major concern is the cost of this project in today's atmosphere and what I see as difficulty for our community in the years ahead to get our revenues on track," Lingle said. "People might say it's a city project, but it affects 80 percent of the state. And to knowingly go into a project that is going to burden people financially for a generation to come, again, a project that the community perhaps cannot afford, I think there needs to be adjustment.

"I don't know another project except this one that has made no adjustment from a pre-recession to a post-recession proposal.""

Saturday, January 9, 2010 in The Honolulu Advertiser

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