TRAFFIC

O'AHU MASS TRANSIT A NEED-TO-HAVE PROJECT

I'm no genius nor am I a reporter, but here's what I know about sewers and transit.

The mass transit system is going to be paid for with federal money and that extra half percent tacked on to O'ahu's general excise tax. That money can't be spent on anything else. As a resident of the West side who sits in traffic day in and day out, I see mass transit as a need-to-have project, not a nice-to-have project. Dave Shapiro can come drive with me if he doesn't think we need to have mass transit.

Improvements to the sewage treatment and collection system are paid for with different sources of funding, which includes the sewer fund that our previous mayor raided.

The current mayor, Mufi Hannemann, hasn't said he's not going to make needed repairs or upgrades to the sewer system — he's just doing what we can afford and what's needed.

Please, Mr. Shapiro, don't pit those of us who are desperate for traffic relief against those who want sewer improvements.

Lots of us want both, and I think Mayor Hannemann is doing a good job of trying to stretch government dollars to get it all done.

HAWAI'I DRIVERS DON'T STOP FOR PEDESTRIANS

I am not surprised at the rash of traffic accidents reported in the news recently. I run in my neighborhood of Mililani Mauka everyday. I avoid crossing the main road (Meheula Parkway), but I do have to cross it once. I have yet to have any vehicle stop or even slow down to let me cross the road. I just run in place in plain view in the crosswalk and wait while all the cars have passed.

I wonder if anyone would stop for a child or an elderly person. I drive on Schofield Barracks and Hickam Air Force Base and these drivers actually yield to pedestrians.

Maybe all the licensed drivers in this state need to retest every license renewal.

MAYOR'S TRANSIT PANEL IDEA HAS MUCH MERIT

The city administration has proposed an independent panel to determine a technology for Honolulu's mass transit system. This so-called panel of experts would not be affiliated in any way with those proposing to design, build or operate the system.

This idea has merit because it takes away politics from the decision-making process. A decision would be made on engineering and technical criteria, not by those with political influence.

Just think, if we left the route selection up to an independent panel, the Honolulu International Airport, Waikiki and the University of Hawai'i-Manoa campus might well have been included in the first phase of the transit project

WHERE IS THE ALOHA ON ISLAND STREETS TODAY?

I witnessed what was almost an accident recently on Farrington Highway in Waipahu.

I was standing at a bus stop and a double-length bus stopped to pick up passengers. A car following the bus put on a blinker to pass the bus in the left lane. The lane looked clear, but as the driver started to pass, a car seemed to come out of nowhere behind her.

He blared his horn at her the entire time she passed the bus and pulled in front of it. He was so busy yelling at her that he lost control of his car and went up onto the median strip.

Fortunately she slowed down, because when he gained control of his car, he shot out across both lanes and would have broadsided her had she not slowed down.

He then pulled into a parking lot on the right and she went on by.

How long did it take her to pass that bus? What is the speed limit going through Waipahu? Is it worth wrecking your car?

Where is the aloha?

POTHOLES

DON'T BLAME MATERIAL, BLAME REPAIR METHOD

This is in reference to Mark Terry's Dec. 19 letter, "Road material must be source of the problem."

Mr. Terry is blaming the materials on why we continue having potholes. It is not the material that's the problem. It's the method used to fix it (250-pound foot stomp or the shovel smack) and the timing of it all.

I drove on Ala Moana Boulevard just before the marathon, and the pothole truck and men were filling up the potholes. It was pouring rain and the holes were filled with water.

We always hear that the reason for so many potholes after a rain is because water gets in the hole and the material comes out. Now let's go back to the middle of my story about watching the workers, aka 250-pound foot stompers and shovel smackers, filling the pukas up during the rain. Sounds like a big waste of taxpayers' money.

Fix the roads the right way with the big rollers. Or is this just job security (don't fix it too well and we will have jobs)?

SUGAR BOWL

BRONCOS FANS CHEERING FOR UH FOOTBALL TEAM

From a Broncos fan to the Warriors — win big! You deserve it. You earned it.

Many of us are cheering for you here in Idaho. We are proud of you. I grew up in Hawai'i, and always have mixed feelings when BSU and Hawai'i play. But now — Go Warriors!

HONOLULU MARATHON

VENDOR TENTS SHOULD BE ON PARK'S PAVED AREAS

Unlike the timing problems experienced by the Honolulu Marathon, the damage to Kapi'olani Park was foreseeable and preventable.

Anyone who visited the park on Friday before the marathon could see that the ground was already saturated and much of the grass was under an inch or more of water. Heavily traveled areas around the Nike tent were already a sea of mud. Allowing trucks to enter the grassy areas after Friday demonstrated negligence by marathon and park officials, and arrogance and disrespect for the park by vendors and suppliers.

The marathon is a wonderful event, but associated vendors do not have the right to damage Kapi'olani Park and deny other park users use of the fields and picnic areas.

Future marathons should set up the vendor and other tents in the paved parking areas. Non-park department vehicles should not be allowed access to the grass-covered areas in the park.

Park officials have a responsibility to take action to protect the park when it becomes obvious that activities are seriously damaging the grounds and facilities. They should have done so on Dec. 5 through at least Dec. 8.

INFRASTRUCTURE

CONTINUED NEGLECT OF WAI'ANAE OUTRAGEOUS

Before memory fades regarding the recent storm woes that cut power and isolated thousands on the Wai'anae Coast, I would like to commend and give a big mahalo to the Honolulu Police Department, Hawaiian Electric Co., the Honolulu Fire Department, and all those in the public and private sector who worked hard to get things back to normal.

But as your editorial said, the woeful infrastructure problem will continue to plague the Wai'anae Coast.

Where were government officials when this debacle happened? All we had was a weak "apology" by HECO. Their silence spoke volumes about the continued neglect and outrageous incompetence in providing the necessary required services for a civilized society on O'ahu's westside. Auwe.

TIMES SUPERMARKET

STRIKE MAKING IT HARD FOR AREA BUSINESSES

What are they thinking? What the union currently on strike at Times Market hopes to achieve by blocking off entire shopping center parking lots is beyond me.

They certainly have the right to strike, but they can't have the right to make it difficult for customers and businesses other than Times to do business, can they?

Makes no sense to me, and I have no empathy for this group.

SHORT-TERM RENTALS

B&BS WANT TO KEEP SMALL-TOWN CHARACTER

Regarding Kalana Best's comments on vacation rentals (Letter, Dec. 14), I coordinate a grass-root network called Na Hale Ho'okipa O Hawai'i Nei ( Homes of Hospitality of Hawai'i). Our network currently numbers over 400 bed-and-breakfast and vacation home owners, neighborhood businesses, property managers and supporters on the islands of O'ahu, Maui and Kaua'i. Not all members are rental owners.

Our primary mission is to contribute to maintaining the small-town character and integrity of our neighborhoods that host visitors. Second, to maintain the quality of life of our residents, and third and finally, provide the intimate neighborhood experiences that some visitors desire.

Hosting visitors doesn't appear until third on our mission because we know that without the character of our town and neighborhoods there would be no visitors.

Visitors to our homes don't want Waikiki, Ko Olina or Turtle Bay. Or they're local people returning home to visit friends and family. They simply want to stay near where they grew up.

We want to maintain the quality of life in our neighborhoods because, frankly, they are our neighborhoods too.

We look forward to working constructively with the City Council on these issues.

HONOLULU SYMPHONY

HAWAI'I LEADERS NEED TO RESET OUR PRIORITIES

Your Dec. 16 Page One article, "Symphony can't pay musicians this month," should have sent out another SOS ("Save Our Symphony") alarm throughout the state.

The crisis engendered by the Honolulu Symphony's eviction from the Neal Blaidsell Center in favor of "The Lion King" underscores how tenuous the symphony's financial situation is.

This story deserved at least as much coverage as your June Jones profile and your article on the Sugar Bowl payout of $4.5 million.

We need community and political leaders to reset our priorities. Popular entertainment should not come at the expense of our wonderful local symphony.

An obsession with pop culture and college football undermines our priorities, and leads to the devolution of society to its lowest common denominator.

The governor should release the $4 million in state funds for the Honolulu Symphony Foundation authorized two years ago.

The mayor should do more to alleviate the damage done by the symphony's eviction from the Blaisdell Center than waive the symphony's rental fees through January. How about re-directing some of the city's profits from "The Lion King" to the symphony?

Exposure to symphony concerts should be a requirement of every student in our educational system — from kindergarten through college.

Smetana, Beethoven and Brahms are but a few examples of musical geniuses who have created masterpieces that elevate our comprehension of beauty and human greatness on a universal scale. Let us band together to elevate our Honolulu Symphony to a more secure and valued position in our community.

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