Lagging behind the electric-vehicle bandwagon

Wasn’t Hawaii supposed to be this perfect, self-contained test laboratory for electric vehicles, among other green-energy technologies?

So when we heard eight states had signed an agreement to put 3.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025, it was natural to scan the list and expect to find the Aloha State on it.

California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont … um, nope. We can’t even say we were beat to the punch by the nation’s bigger states.

Their plan includes building charging stations to calm fears that motorists would run out of power, but with Hawaii’s shorter commute distances, that’s not much of a problem for us.

Tourism industry hopes for equilibrium

What goes up, must … temporarily plateau as expected at a satisfactory level?

That’s the hope for Hawaii’s tourism industry, which posted declining visitor arrivals in September for the first time in two years.

The experts don’t seem too worried, noting that with 8 million people expected to visit Hawaii this year, airlines, hotels, car rental companies and other businesses reliant on tourism are well-positioned to withstand what they describe as a seasonal dip. Bookings are strong through the winter holidays and even up to August 2014, so the confidence seems well-founded.