Report: Plan to shorten rail route could shrink ridership by thousands

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The city’s plan to shorten the Honolulu rail route could shrink the number of people who will use the trains on a daily basis, new data shows.

As first reported by Honolulu Civil Beat on Monday, the rail authority’s newly released recovery plan estimates that about 84,000 people will use the rail each weekday in the year 2030.

A full 20-mile route going to Ala Moana was expected to have a daily ridership of more than 100,000.

A study conducted back in 2012 had an even higher estimate, with nearly 120,000 people using the rail every weekday.

A long series of cost overruns and delays had also raised questions about the accuracy of the old ridership numbers.

The plan also proposed the deferral of the Pearl Highlands parking garage, which would reduce boardings by about 11% and overall rail ridership by 1.7%.

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi is proposing a shorter route that stops at Kakaako, saying he’s trying to secure federal funding and keep the project under $10 billion.

He said he ultimately wants the rail to reach all the way to the University of Hawaii at Manoa but that it’s not possible with the current city finances.

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