Review: Honolulu has financial capacity for rail
The first column of Honolulu’s rail transit project at Kapolei was revealed last month when the concrete forms were removed.
A consulting company’s review says Honolulu has the financial capacity to build and operate a rail line from Kapolei to Ala Moana Center.
Porter & Associates, Inc. prepared the report last month for the Federal Transit Administration.
The report says Honolulu’s operating and capital financial plans for rail are based on reasonable assumptions regarding future costs and revenues.
But the report cautions Honolulu’s general fund and highway fund expenses must grow at slower-than-historical rates in order for the city to be able to subsidize the rail line.
The report says the city could withstand a 10 percent increase in the rail line’s cost and survive a lower growth rate for the general excise tax.
The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transit issued a press release on the report today.
