Delays in the construction of Honolulu’s new elevated rail system will cost less than initial estimates suggested, HART has announced.
Work on the project has been put on hold after a Supreme Court ruling meant a new archeological study would have to be carried out on the proposed site before the project could continue.
The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) said on January 10 that delay costs have been largely lower than expected.
Contractor Kiewit Infrastructure West had filed delay claims for construction contracts for the first two phases of the rail route from East Kapolei to Aloha Stadium, and the train maintenance and storage facility in Waipahu.
HART will continue to work with the contractor on future delay claims and how to keep these costs as low as possible until rail construction can resume later this year.
Costs related to delay claims for the months of September and October for the two rail guideway construction contracts came in 36 and 31 per cent, respectively, lower than expected.
Although, September delay costs for the maintenance and storage facility construction contract came in 16 per cent higher than projected.
HART chief executive Dan Grabauskas said: “HART will continue to work with the contractor on future delay claims and how to keep these costs as low as possible until rail construction can resume later this year.”
In November 2012, The U.S. Federal Transit Administration (FTA) informed Congress of its plans to release $1.55 billion for the Honolulu elevated rail project.
Project officials hope to resume rail construction in West Oahu this autumn.
