Rail proposition wins, barely, on Honolulu ballot

[KamaAina]

Many people here in my office -- bus riders, all -- opposed this! Of course, those who are blind ride cabs frequently -- and the taxi companies all lobbied against it; just Monday I was in one that had a "Vote No on Rail" sign facing the back seat! :puke:

http://www.starbulletin.com/news/20081105_Rail_Rolls_To_Victory_On_Ballot.html

Oahu residents voted to approve the City Charter amendment supporting the 20-mile elevated steel-rail transit system from Kapolei to Ala Moana, the single-largest public works project in state history....

The mayor said the economy and environment need the steel-wheel-on-steel-rail system. "But most of all, our families need traffic relief," he said....

The vote was a blow to Stop Rail Now, the group that opposed the project.

Cliff Slater, a leader of the group, which gathered at a computer store on South Street, said he was disappointed.

A computer store on South Street? :wtf:

The final totals: About 53%-47%. It's great to know that roughly half of my neighbors -- and coworkers -- want me to spend 45 minutes commuting each way for the rest of my life. :sarcasm:

[nxylas]

1. I bet you're feeling pretty good right now

The Obama victory AND this all in one day!

[Vogon_Glory]

2. The Irony Is That Honolulu HAD Commuter Rail

The irony is that Honolulu HAD commuter rail service as late as the end of World War Two. The old Oahu Railway and Land Company ran passenger service up to the time of its abandonment and added commuter runs during the Second World War.

Of course these were very primitive by today's standards--narrow gauge (The same gauge used by Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, and the Durango & Silverton tourist train), steam locomotives, and non-air coniditioned wooden passenger cars with open vestibules.

A modern elevated rail system like what San Juan, PR or Miami, FL has would be a vast improvement.

[KamaAina]

3. The real irony is that the old OR&L station is down the block from my office!

the tracks ran right through what is now our parking lot. The Spanish-style station building has been converted to state offices.

Also, the OR&L tracks ran all the way around Ka'ena Point on the way out to Hale'iwa, favored as a resort town by the planters and such. There isn't even a road around there today. Surely that would mhave been one of the "Great Railway Journeys of the World"!