The construction of Honolulu’s rail project, now carrying a price tag of $8.6 billion, has been stymied in the last year or more with debilitating cost increases and delays. And more recently, the spotlight has swiveled to illuminate harshly the mounting worries about the structural stability of the project, which could have even more catastrophic consequences.
The only positive news to emerge has been this: Efforts to bring better construction expertise into the top echelon of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation offer a glimmer of hope. Nobody can expect calm waters, but if HART must navigate the whitewater rapids ahead, at least the agency can do so with more expert guidance at the helm.
About a month ago, reports issued by HART and the project’s federal overseers pointed out cracks that were forming in the plastic padding used to give the rail tracks a level surface. In addition, according to the reports, strands in some of the tendons, or steel structural reinforcements, had snapped apart. And this is happening years before the first train car has even been set on the guideway.
On Sunday, more alarm bells were rung by Dennis Mitsunaga, president and CEO of Mitsunaga &Associates, an architectural, engineering and construction management firm. Mitsunaga took out a large ad in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in which he staked out a position as a structural engineer who sees clear safety issues with the project.
Whether or not the structural integrity of the project ultimately is compromised, a prominent professional going public with that concern, putting his reputation on the line, merits serious attention by HART’s newest executive officer, Krishniah Murthy.
Murthy, a consultant with credible and extensive experience in transit development, was hired Thursday on an interim basis to replace Dan Grabauskas, the agency’s former executive director and CEO. He becomes the city’s top-paid employee, with a base salary of $400,000, with promise of a bonus if he hits benchmarks.
That stunning figure is defensible for the short term, given the state of a project in critical need of a turnaround, with a funding shortfall of at least $1.8 billion and very little room for additional error. It’s virtually impossible to hire someone on the cheap who has the credentials for what is essentially a tryout position lasting only one year.
Before retiring in 2014 and starting his consultancy, Murthy served as the L.A. County Metropolitan Transit Authority’s executive director for project delivery. His resume cites more than four decades working to deliver new rail, highway and bus projects.
And that experience includes some knotty complications with projects. A quick search of past headlines brought out an example with work on the I-405 in Southern California, including delays stemming from construction flaws and unanticipated utility lines.
Sound familiar, Honolulu? This parallel might serve as useful preparation for the problems Murthy now has at hand.
But clearly, Murthy has a lot to prove in order to earn that compensation for the coming year, let alone any potential hire as the agency’s permanent chief. Top priority must be given to the structural concerns, with a recommended solution that does not paper over such a serious issue.
And now that a new board member has been appointed with significant construction know-how — Glenn Nohara, who chairs Koga Engineering &Construction — HART seems better equipped to refocus attention on the difficult challenges ahead on the most densely developed part of the rail alignment.
Honolulu taxpayers need to have their confidence in the project restored. Plainly that can happen only with clear thinking, swift action and straight talk from people who know what they’re doing.
