A consultant report projects the city’s rail transit system will save about $166 million on the so-called mauka shift track realignment on Dillingham Boulevard.
Moving the rail transit line from one side of Dillingham to the other would allow the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to avoid having to relocate high-voltage power lines.
HART had projected a savings of $150 million through the mauka shift. The report by consultant Triunity pegs that figure at $166 million.
In addition, HART could slash off about five months of work from the project by moving the track.
"If you’re cutting five months potentially off the schedule, that will have an impact I would assume on our cost too, because we wouldn’t have as much delay cost and other things that may have been computed into this," said Colleen Hanabusa, the chair of the HART Board of Directors. "So I think it also has an impact when you look at the total schedule as well."
The Triunity report also noted that HART could save an additional $749 million because of lower projected costs in building guideways and stations through downtown Honolulu and at Pearl Highlands — as well as cuts in professional services such as consultants and staffing.
At its board meeting Thursday, Hanabusa established a four-person group to work on HART’s Revised Recovery Plan, a document for federal transit officials that details how the city plans to meet budget in completing the rail system.
HART interim CEO Lori Kahikina told board members she is awaiting a letter from federal officials that would give them until June 30, 2022, to present the plan, as opposed to an original April 2022 deadline.
Completion of the plan was delayed until the Honolulu City Council decided how much of the city’s new visitor bed tax would go toward rail funding.
The City Council voted earlier this month to devote a third of the revenues to rail for the first two years, with half going to rail thereafter. Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi signed the bill into law on Tuesday, Dec. 14.
Hanabusa also announced that she has received a letter of resignation from board member Hoyt Zia, effective at the end of December, and that another board member may leave shortly.
Starting in 2022, Kahikina will shed the “interim” title to become Honolulu rail’s next permanent executive director.
Click here to read the complete report from consulting company Triunity.
