Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.
Editorials
Tuesday, October 31, 2000Staggered hours could
make commuting fasterThe issue: Governor Cayetano intends to implement a staggered- hours pilot program for state workers as a means of relieving traffic congestion.
SINCE his years in the Legislature, Ben Cayetano has been an opponent of rail transit and a supporter of alternatives to rail. He was a leading advocate of decentralization -- including government offices -- as a means of easing traffic congestion in and out of downtown Honolulu at rush hour. Now, in the last two years of his governorship, Cayetano has decided to give staggered working hours another try for the same purpose -- relieving traffic congestion.
We think it's worth a try.
The governor wants most state employees to start their working days later -- at 8:30 a.m. rather than 7:45 -- during a six-month pilot program. The public schools would be exempted, at least initially. About 5,500 state employees commute into downtown -- the largest number of any employer -- so changing the hours of this group could have the biggest impact.
In characteristically high-handed fashion, Cayetano announced his plan without consulting the public employee unions. He claims he has the statutory authority to order new work hours, suggesting he may do so without union support. An official of the HGEA said the union would be willing to discuss the issue but would resist having the change shoved down its members' throats.
A spokeswoman for the governor said the staggered-hours plan is in the preliminary stage. When it is moves into the implementation phase, she said, "the unions will be consulted." By that time, however, resistance may have hardened.
As lieutenant governor, Cayetano sponsored a previous experiment with staggered hours in 1988. It involved 4,000 city, state and private-sector workers who reported at 8:30 a.m. instead of 7:45 and lasted a month. The governor said the trial showed a "significant positive impact" but an independent study found that the effect, while beneficial, was small.
The point of staggered hours is to level off usage during the peak traffic times so that everyone on the road can get where he or she is going faster -- in other words, to make the traffic system more efficient. The problem is that the people whose working hours are changed may experience inconvenience because they have personal arrangements, such as dropping children off at school, that are affected.
Staggered hours will never solve the problem of traffic congestion, but they can be part of a program to alleviate it. Although improvements to the bus system are being made, Honolulu commuters can expect delays at rush hour into the foreseeable future. There are no plans to build additional freeways, so motorists must make the best of what they already have.
A degree of inconvenience in personal arrangements is the tradeoff for somewhat reduced commuting times. It's an adjustment that may be necessary merely to avoid even longer commuting times as the number of vehicles on the highways continues to increase.
However, Cayetano is only asking for trouble if he tries to push through his plan without widespread support, particularly of the people directly affected. In a democracy, having the authority to order a change does not mean it will work if most of the people are opposed.
Before proceeding, the governor must convince people that the sacrifice is worth making.
Parks are neglected
STATE parks on Kauai are in wretched condition. A report by Kauai correspondent Anthony Sommer in yesterday's Star-Bulletin details the problems.
Sommer writes that leaders of Kauai tourism industry and environmental groups, which rarely agree on an issue, are in accord that "the state Department of Land and Natural Resources has allowed its facilities to fall into so much disrepair that they are being overwhelmed by visitors to Kauai."
The problems include: crumbling public restrooms, washed-out hiking trails, impassable roads, parking lots full of potholes, signs that are too faded to be legible, beaches without lifeguards or emergency telephones and overcrowded harbors.
DNLR officials don't deny the problems exist, but note that the department is strapped for funds and has been forced to cut back in all divisions.
Sommer points out that tourism on Kauai, more than on any other island, depends on the state to maintain most visitor attractions. More than half of the 26,000 acres of state parkland in the islands are on Kauai, but in the last five years parks on Kauai have received no more than 18 percent of the state parks' operating budget.
In fact, the parks on Kauai aren't the only ones to suffer from neglect by the state. Take a look at the Sand Island State Park in Honolulu for another example of striking neglect -- of a relatively new facility in close proximity to the highest concentration of people in Hawaii.
These conditions are shameful. If the Cayetano administration refuses to include more money in the budget to maintain the parks, the Legislature should provide a remedy.
The irony is that this governor, who has allowed the parks to deteriorate for lack of maintenance, is now proposing a huge new park to replace the Ala Wai Golf Course, the busiest course in the country, which would be moved elsewhere. With the money this project would require, the problems of existing state parks could be corrected -- probably with millions of dollars left over.
There is no problem with the Ala Wai course. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Instead, fix the state parks, which need it.
Published by Liberty Newspapers Limited PartnershipRupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
