Letters to the Editor

New parking meters basically fraudulent

The new parking meters the city is exploring sound like a good and convenient idea.

That is, they would be a good idea if they were not fraudulent.

If the city disables the automatic reset function, the meters will be honest and a big improvement, but having the meters reset to zero when a car drives away means that the city will be getting paid twice for the same time in many cases. That is dishonest.

These types of resetting meters have existed in Japan for a couple of decades, and when I noticed the reset function on the meters in Japan I was glad that we did not have the same dishonest kind of meters in Hawaii. Now the city wants them and figures the added revenue will pay the cost. The added revenue comes primarily from charging twice for the same time period.

How can the city expect its citizens to be honest when it is busily cheating them?

Bob Gould
Kaneohe

No complaints with Leaf electric vehicle

As a Nissan Leaf owner and driver for nearly a year, I feel I must correct recent statements in both the Star-Advertiser and Honolulu Magazine that the Leaf is "sluggish" when shifted into Eco mode.

It’s true that when shifting to Eco there is a noticeable, slight drop in speed, but this is easily altered by simply pushing a bit on the accelerator.

I normally drive in Eco mode, and can easily pass anything on the road, including going uphill over the Pali, which is my usual route. The torque and acceleration for this car at any speed exceeds any car I have ever driven, in Eco or otherwise.

As for the limitation on driving distance, yes, you have to plan your trips and charging times, but we have not found this to be a large problem, especially with the increasing availability of charging stations, mostly free as of now. And the free parking is great.

Steve Coles
Kailua

Rail will help a few, hurt many others

The rail may have its attributes, but it seems the more we delve into it, the more the bad seems to outweigh the good.

For instance, in June the city is scheduled to severely curtail bus services, even though ridership is up because of high gas prices. This is just the first shot across the bow to bus riders, because as rail nears completion it is likely that more bus resources are going to be diverted to support the rail.

Since the rail will serve only the west side of Oahu, that means that everywhere around Oahu, public transportation will be degraded and only the west side of Oahu will get an upgrade.

Is it OK to hammer the rest of Oahu’s population to serve only a very small number of commuters? Apparently the city thinks it is.

One segment of our population, the seniors, are the ones who will take the biggest hit as a result of the degradation of public transportation.

Royle Kaneshige
Waialua

Residents deserve travel alternatives

The rail will have its positives.

Some commuters will use it to get to and from work, and some will still desire to drive.We cannot change behaviors.However, to not offer opportunities is even worse. There will be many people who will relish the idea that they don’t have to worry about driving — just park and ride.

Also, the rail will offer an opportunity for those families with one vehicle to see more of our wonderful island.

They could go downtown to shop and still get home in time for family functions without driving in afternoon traffic.

Jeffery Edlund
Ewa Beach

Teachers want help, not bonus money

As a teacher at Waianae High School, I am all in favor of paying principals and teachers well. However, dangling bonus money in front of them as though all they need to do is expend just a little more effort is offensive and ineffective.

We are already working very hard, trying to address and overcome issues over which we have little or no control, but which strongly affect student achievement, such as poverty, parental education, drug use and other home life challenges.

So. please, support your local students, teachers, principals and schools. But not with bonus money. Instead, give us your respect and support our students in the communities where they live, with counseling, tutoring, mentoring, jobs and career training, adult education, low-income housing and any other strategy that will help them break out of the cycle of poverty.

Our students need hope. They want to believe that we care what happens to them, and that what they do matters. Let’s give them a reason to be hopeful.

Bobbi Halpin
Ewa Beach

Noisy scooters are a public nuisance

A motor scooter rider listed dos and don’ts for car and truck drivers ("Top 3 dos and don’ts to help scooter riders," Star-Advertiser, May 20).

I agree with his suggestions, but I would like to suggest some dos and don’ts for riders of those very irritatingly noisy scooters that sound like angry bees.

» Do remember that noise from your scooter affects many people in the neighborhoods you drive through. Have respect and consideration for them.

» Do accelerate gently from stop lights.The harder you accelerate, the more noise you make and the more people you disturb.

» Do remember that when it is dark, noise is more disturbing than during the day.

» Don’t rev your engine when sitting at a traffic light. It is unnecessary and irritating.

» Don’t modify the muffler on your scooter.It’s illegal.

» Don’t buy one of those noisy scooters in the first place. If you already have one, trade it in for the quiet kind.

Bob Kern
Honolulu