After clearing two lawsuits in February, and weathering a contentious mayoral election, the Honolulu light rail project is under construction.
"On a rural expanse of Oahu’s leeward coast, a line of concrete pillars snakes through fields of corn stalks and pumpkins toward downtown Honolulu where distant high rises jut into the sky through a muggy haze," reports Sophie Cocke. The pillars are a conspicuous sign of a game-changing light rail project. At a price of $5.2 billion, "the rail project is the largest public works project in Hawaii’s history," and the plan has been in the works since the 1960s.
Cocke's coverage of the current state of the route also looks forward, detailing some of the development plans for the corridor. "A plan, recently approved by Mayor Kirk Caldwell and the Honolulu City Council, dubbed, 'Live, Work, Play, Aiea,' includes up to 1,500 residential units in five new high-rises, as well as retail space and a possible hotel. The development is slated to be built around the planned Pearlridge Transit Station."
FULL STORY: Honolulu Rail Takes Shape, City Prepares for Development Boom
Honolulu Light Rail to Open in June
The city’s first light rail line will finally begin service after more than a half century of planning.
Honolulu Rail Cost Overruns Now Exceed $1 Billion
Add another $200 million to the $910 million shortfall already facing Honolulu's rail project. The changing circumstances surrounding the project won't make it any easier to create a viable funding plan to make up the difference.
Skyline Rail, Now Serving Honolulu
In a historic day for public transit, Skyline Rail, a project once deemed the worst transit project in the United States due to extreme cost overruns and construction delays, finally opened to the public at the end of June.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
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Planning for Universal Design
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research