That’s the cover of the new edition of the Honolulu Weekly, which hit the streets Wednesday. But the story inside isn’t (just) a screed against the crazy train project. Instead, it’s an examination of an idea that’s been largely ignored to this point: a Honolulu subway.
Yes, a train running beneath our feet.
The article explores relative costs and engineering questions. It also briefly touches on the one issue that might be the biggest remaining hurdle for an above-ground system, let alone a subterranean one:
Of course, Honolulu has its own “antiquities”–na iwi, the bones of the island’s first inhabitants, buried beneath the city’s streets. Kakaako, which stretches east of downtown and astride the proposed rail line, has yielded scores of skeletal remains in the past 20 years as it has been dug up for high-rise development. Several major construction projects (Walmart on Keeaumoku Street, the Ward Village Shops on Auahi Street) have been delayed–but not stopped–as bones were discovered, disinterred and relocated, as required under state law.
So, go read the story and come back and tell us: What do you think of an underground train through Honolulu?
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