A big retailer gives up e-cigs

The first to snuff out their e-cigarette sales will be those that can most afford to lose the merchandise line. Walmart on Friday announced that its stores and sibling Sam’s Clubs will exit, in the wake of stories about illness and death from vaping.

The thing to watch will be whether the smaller retail shops will do the same, worried about impending regulations and liability woes. As it is, even Walmart said it would sell its existing inventory first. Nobody’s lost sight of the bottom line.

Rail heads for Dillingham

Within the next few weeks, Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation staffers are expected to release the latest plan for tackling what likely ranks among the most daunting challenges for the $9.2 billion rail project: relocating utility lines along a congested stretch of Dillingham Boulevard.

The plan also includes expanding the boulevard’s makai side by 10 feet to make way for a guideway that’s to span the median. HART’s best bet for meeting its goal of clearing a path for rail within a two-year timeframe likely hinges on being as upfront at possible about neighborhood disruptions.