The first phase of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation's innovative driverless rail transit project was ready for passengers in 2023. Now, the third and final portion of the line is finally underway.
Contracts totaling $1.66 billion have been signed with Los Angeles-based Tutor Perini Corporation to complete the City Center Guideway and Stations segment of the island's automated rail project.
"This is another huge milestone for our rail project," HART Executive Director and CEO Lori Kahikina said, according to Railway-News.
"This is the largest single contract of the entire project and sets the course for completing the project through downtown Honolulu. We are excited to begin work with Tutor Perini to make this happen."
The company will design and build six stations and about three miles of elevated guideway, with construction scheduled to begin in 2025 and expected to be completed by 2030.
Five years of construction work may seem like a lot, but this final phase in the HART rail project will be connecting the existing lines to the bustling downtown area of Honolulu, requiring extensive utility relocation to make way for the elevated line's columns, guideways, and stations.
Not only is this the first large-scale, publicly run automated metro system in the U.S., but it's also the first of its kind to include protective platform screen doors, keeping riders safely away from the tracks, as Metro Rail Today detailed.
The initial phase completed in June 2023 already offers 20 four-car vehicles made by Hitachi Rail that can accommodate around 800 riders each. They're ADA-compliant, air-conditioned, and have bike, luggage, and, of course, surfboard storage areas.
By adding electrically powered public transportation options, these beautiful destinations are ditching heavily polluting dirty fuels and improving the environment for nearby communities. Other actions, such as closing the state's only coal plant, are furthering air-quality improvements for this remote paradise.
This all tracks with the state's goals to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2045, bolstered by other sustainable projects, such as grid-scale wave-energy generators that have already deployed.
Walking and biking are the most environmentally friendly ways to get around, but even shifting from cars to public transport can reduce up to 2.2 tons of planet-warming pollution per person each year.
Since both traditional and electric bikes are allowed to be transported on the Skyline, as the rail line is commonly known, you'll be able to go car-free more often, especially once the final phase of the system has been completed.
By ditching cars entirely, you can further reduce your carbon footprint by up to 3.6 tons annually, according to the U.N.'s guide to climate action.
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