George Nitta - Hawaii Automotive 101

From: Verycoolrides@aol.com
Date: Sat, 5 Apr 2008 18:58:42 -0400
Subject: Las Vegas Connection
To: Georgenitta@hotmail.com
CC: SMITH1127@aol.com

A RAIL ALTERNATIVE
By: Morris Osedo - 8/14/07

I would like to discuss two things about the rail.
1. Cons of a fixed rail system.
2. A rail alternative.

CONS OF A FIXED RAIL SYSTEM:
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Have the leeward residents who want the rail thought about the details of actually riding the rail?

1. Leaving home, they ride a bus to the rail. Then they transfer to the rail. When they get to town, unless their destination is within walking distance from the rail they will have to make a second transfer from the rail to a bus. Going to the UH would definitely require a second transfer.

2. Since the rail is elevated, the stations will be elevated. This will mean extra time walking up/down stairs in crowds. That plus waiting for the next ride could amount to 15 minutes per transfer. So with two transfers it might add 30 minutes to the total travel time.

3. There will be stops along the way at the different stations again adding to the total travel time.

4. If a unit breaks down, won’t it block the entire rail going in that direction until they can somehow move it off the main rail?

5. If there is a power failure or emergency, will riders be stuck 75 feet high on a "rail" until the situation is rectified? In an earthquake that damages the structure, riders will have to be careful not be electrocuted by hot rails while walking to the next station.

6. Hawaiian Electric can barely meet the electrical demands now so they will have to build an electrical plant only for the rail. This will be an additional huge cost.

A RAIL ALTERNATIVE:
================
Here’s a rail alternative that I hope everyone will consider and bug their government representatives to support:

1. Build a 4 lane elevated highway to be used by buses and emergency vehicles only. Two lanes in each direction. Call it the "transit highway" in this discussion.

2. Instead of expensive high tech rail engines, use cheaper low tech buses. The buses could be single or multiple linked units similar to the linked double buses that are currently running. They could be cosmetically streamlined for a modern look if desired.

3. Have the buses burn bio-diesel or ethanol and grow the fuel locally.

4. The two outside lanes (one in each direction) of the 4 lane transit highway would be used for buses that make stops at every station along the way.

5. The two inside lanes (one in each direction) would be used for express buses that don’t make a lot of stops to shorten the travel time.

6. When the “express” buses reach town, they will have to merge with the regular traffic but they will be able to go to the UH or Waikiki with no transfers required. This extends the system without having to build a dedicated rail to the UH or to Waikiki.

7. The buses that make stops at every station would turn around and "not" go to the UH or Waikiki. This would provide the dead on bus schedule that insures that every bus arrives and leaves each station at the precise time. Precise times are possible since these buses will not be integrated with the traffic like they are now. Underscore “precise” times. I think that that precise arrival and departure times are crucial for success of the rail or an alternative rail system. Therefore every bus should have large clock with second hand on the dashboard that is extremely accurate or synched with a master clock via wireless means. This is how the subways in Japan work and why they are so precise.

8. Folks living in the Mililani/Wahiawa direction could catch buses which would be able to get on to the transit highway. This would enable them to use the transit highway without a transfer. Folks living in Hawaii-Kai could catch buses that get on the transit highway to get to leeward destinations.

9. If a bus breaks down, the following buses can just go around it using the center lane so there is no blockage of the system like the rail can have.

10. Electrical power failures will not affect buses. In emergencies, people can exit the buses and walk on the highway which is something they know how to do.

11. Emergency vehicles can use the center lanes and avoid getting slowed down or stuck in traffic. On and off ramps to the dedicated highway would have to be built an strategic points to allow the emergency vehicles to get on and off.

12. If the H1 gets a major blockage like the time the military truck hit the pedestrian walkway, the dedicated highway could be opened up for cars. It would be slower but a lot better than not being able to go home for 15 hours like what happened. In these "rare" cases, cars would be able to enter and exit the transit highway using the emergency vehicle ramps.

SUMMARY
=======
This proposed rail alternative can eliminate or reduce the need to do transfers by having buses transition from surface highways to the transit highway. This could eliminate transfer hassles that might discourage folks from riding it.

This system can EXTEND the mass transit system without having to build dedicated rail to the UH, Waikiki, Hawaii-Kai or to the Mililani/Wahiawa direction. This alternative can provide mass transit from Hawaii-Kai to Wahiawa and beyond from day-1. If the route is through the Salt-Lake area as currently proposed, buses can exit and go to the Airport, Hickam and Pearl Harbor from day-1. Later on elevated highways can be built to those points depending on what happens.

With rail, the rail structure must be built "all the way" to what ever destination it serves. With this bus alternative, elevated highways only have to be built to "where the traffic starts". Buses can transition from the elevated highway to surface streets "past" the main traffic and extend the system, something that rail cannot do.

In an emergency like an earthquake that damages the structure, riders can exit the buses and walk to the closest station or to emergency pedestrian stairways "on roads", something they know how to do. They won't have to worry about being electrocuted by rails.

This rail alternative eliminates the need to build another electric power plant to provide electricity for a rail system.

It provides inherent redundancy since:
1) each bus would have its own power source so electrical power failures will have no effect.
2) multiple lanes and the ability of buses to change lanes easily prevent breakdowns from blocking throughput of the system.

END

Sent: Wednesday, January 31, 2007 8:06 PM
Subject: Japan listener

Hi George,

I am a Japanese and Hawaii resident and I am very grateful to be able to
hear your program whenever I can. I hope to call into your program when I
return to Hawaii in a month or so. Sorry very difficult with writing in English. In Japan keyboard is not
easy to use in typing English. It is "so so" as we say.
It is good to hear what is happening is Hawaii at this moment.
Thank you for keeping your program on air and on the internet.

Domo arigato gozaimase
Masuzawa Hideko

George, thank you for all that you are doing. Happy Thanksgiving. Many,
many people are grateful to you for your sharing. When people like you
give us important info that is not ordinarily given to the public and
should, our responsibility is not just to listen but pass it on to others.
I'm grateful for those who call in and share how your info has helped
them. Some of us need to stay in the background because of narrow or
brain-washed thinking.... I'm so happy for you that your children are
taking after you and respect your knowledge and concern. Take care.
Mahalo nui loa. Sandra

Listening to your 11/04/2006 broadcast prompted me to add to the dilemma of the proposed fixed rail system. The loss of electrical power is only the part of the problem facing any fixed rail system dependent upon electricity. Post any significant earthquake, they will have to inspect all of the rail structures to determine if any damage has occurred before declaring the system safe to operate.

We should continue to support The BUS or, if found, other no fixed transit systems that would continue to provide transport services post a significant earthquake with whatever Buses that are still operable on whatever roads that remain intact. Post a significant earthquake, a fixed rail system is less likely to survive no matter what earthquake measures are in place.

In my opinion, the earthquake that we experienced this past October was a handwriting on the wall against any fixed rail system. The earthquake that inconvenienced us this past October was a wake-up call. We need to wake-up and start exercising our logic and good reasoning.

Thanks George for all of your work in helping us consumers to consume wisely and appropriately.

P.S. I worked as a paramedic for the C&C of Honolulu for 27 years till I retired on September 1, 2004. It was always a dilemma in determining what would be done in a mass casualty event where most of the island of Oahu suffered a major incident. (Natural: i.e., Hurricane, Tsunami, Earthquake, Torrential Rains, and etc. Man-made: i.e., Industrial catastrophe, Terrorism, and etc.) Never mind the other islands in a natural incident that affects our State. We would all be on our own - literally. The continuing concern was how would we begin to respond again in the recovery period post an incident. A major concern was the transport of all the involved individuals to an appropriate area of safety. This was to included the possible extrication and evacuation of these individuals to points that they could be transported. At the same time, the correction of any unsafe conditions would have to be appropriately handled. The Buses - C&C or commercial, if available, along with passable roadways play a major role in this recovery/rescue process. Remaining mobile during these types of incidents is a no-brainer.

Is it possible for you to open your own service stations selling quality gasoline with the Ethanol blend? I figure if a lot of people go to you for the gasoline, the other service stations/oil companies will be forced to give in or they lose money. Since there isn't any competition for the oil companies, their fuel quality standards are below satisfactory. I would think if they had someone like you to compete against soon, they will change their ways or go out of business because who wants to buy low quality fuel which will damage our vehicles. Almost all of us depend on gasoline so why would they change anything just because we the consumers demand a better product. I'm not sure the politicians will help us or something would have be done by now including the gas cap. The solution is for someone to make/sell a better quality fuel 100% Ethanol/gasoline blend of Ethanol so us consumers use a quality fuel, those oil companies use their business making them think again about cheating the public.

An inline friend who is a Hawaii native referred me to your site. We've been discussing alternative fuels. We drive a 2000 Nissan Quest, and it's pretty much a gas pig. And the cost of gas is going thru the roof here in Georgia.

Someone on the same board stated that we could use ethanol -without-refitting the engine. Is this true? Would it be possible to run the car on that, without destroying it's engine?

We just purchased this beast, and my husband delivers papers at night so we have a fairly huge gas bill at the moment. It would be very good news for us if we could switch to ethanol.

We'd really appreciate any advice you could give us. We're getting swamped, and the paper's reimbursement program for gas doesn't even come close to the actual costs we have.

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Aloha George,

You’ll be glad to know that your car care tips are spreading to the far reaches of Vermont , Massachusetts , and New Brunswick , Canada . Within the last month, I have befriended 3 single mothers via e-mail in Vermont (Dena), Massachusetts ( Sharon ), and New Brunswick (Lacie) and have intrigued them with your car care tips J

As winter is approaching, I already advised them about servicing their cooling system, changing their oil to Royal Purple 5w20, and getting Optima batteries for the upcoming winter months!!! Dena and Lacie both own Fords, so I e-mailed them some literature about Motorcraft Premium Gold antifreeze and Motorcraft-brand oil filters (which are Purolators in disguise-LOL). Sharon just bought a brand-spanking-new 2006 Saturn Vue so I advised her to add 2 bottles of Purple Ice to her cooling system. I didn’t push the envelope with the about changing the coolant knowing that GM-cars use factory installed Delco antifreeze which is good antifreeze. I also recommended the Delco brand oil filter to Sharon .

Lacie was a bit taken aback when I told her that the perk of Royal Purple Max ATF(for automatic transmissions) or Synchromax (for manual transmissions) is that it only has to be changed once every 100,000 miles!!! I guess she thought I was joking!!!

Too bad Lance Fujikami isn’t in Vermont to service Dena’s A/C. She tells me it has a musty smell and she hasn’t changed the cabin filter in a while…HELLO!!!!!!!!!! I told her to immediately get some disinfectant spray and spray into the vented area under the hood for now until she has the filter changed and the A/C serviced. She will need to re-spray the A/C system after the filter is changed and the A/C is serviced.

What would we do without you, George???

Aloha,

Dean