Route
The proposed rail line has twenty-one stations and runs from Kapolei to Ala Moana Shopping Center in Honolulu, where it will split into spurs leading to the University of Hawaii at Manoa campus and Waikiki. The line will fork near Aloha Stadium into two routes, one passing Honolulu International Airport, and the other moving through Salt Lake, before reuniting at Middle Street in Kalihi. The city currently plans to build the section of the line between eastern Kapolei and Ala Moana Shopping Center, excluding the portion passing Salt Lake, with a total of twenty-one stations along the route. The city council initially decided to build the Salt Lake route before the airport route, the result of a compromise with City Councilmember Romy Cachola, whose constituents include Salt Lake residents. After the city charter amendment on rail transit passed, the City Council reconsidered the decision, and decided to re-route the rail line to pass by Pearl Harbor and the airport. The line will be served by 128 ft (39 m) long trains, each with a capacity of 390 passengers. The trains will operate with up to twenty departures per hour.
As of June 2013, the line is scheduled to open in two phases in 2017 and 2019:
- 2017: East Kapolei – Aloha Stadium
- 2019: Aloha Stadium – Ala Moana Center
The rail line, as currently planned, will be built starting from suburban areas in Kapolei and Ewa, and progressing towards the urban center in Honolulu. This is because the first phase includes a baseyard for trains, and a planning decision by the city to delay the major infrastructure impacts associated with construction in the urban center to later phases of the project. Future extensions are planned to eventually service the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and Waikiki, as well as Kalaeloa.
On October 21, 2009, the city announced Kiewit Pacific Co. had won the $483 million contract to build the first two stages of the line, bidding $90 million under the expected price. The stations will be tendered separately.
Rolling stock for the line will initially include 80 cars in 40 two-car consists, built by a joint venture between AnsaldoBreda and Ansaldo STS named Ansaldo Honolulu. (AnsaldoBreda and Ansaldo STS previously collaborated on the construction and operation of vehicles for the Copenhagen Metro.) Each car will be 64 ft (20 m) long, weigh 72,000 lb (33,000 kg), and have 36 seats with a listed total capacity of 195 people. The cars will be powered by a third-rail electrification system. The two competing bidders for the rail car contract, Bombardier Transportation and Sumitomo Corporation of America, have filed protests over the award.
Read more about this topic: Honolulu High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project
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