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June 12, 2014   HART completes 100th column along rail route         The Honolulu rail transit project has completed the first 100 support columns of the planned elevated rail system, HART announced today.   Crews finished work on the 100th column along Kualakai Parkway in East Kapolei this morning. HART expects to have 220 columns up by the end of this year that will support the elevated guideway for the first 10 miles of the rail route.   "The fact that we've gone from 16 completed columns to 100 in less than nine months shows tremendous progress for rail," said Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell. "We're moving forward and are well on our way to providing a safe, reliable transportation system that will improve the quality of life for our island residents."   "It is good to see construction moving forward and the progress being made," said Honolulu City Council Chairman Ernest Martin. "The ongoing work brings us one step closer to the day when rail will bring much needed traffic relief for our residents and families islandwide."   HART Board Chairman Ivan Lui-Kwan said, "This is a sign of how well we have been working together. Together, we have built 100 columns, about 130 foundations and have just put up the first segments of our guideway. Working together, we will create a rail transit system to better the lives of residents by having them spend less time in traffic and more quality time at home with their families."   Other rail work already underway includes construction of the train maintenance and operations center in Waipahu, and production at a Kalaeloa concrete casting yard of the guideway segments. Guideway installation work is also underway in East Kapolei.   "We're also scheduled to award several major construction contracts later this year, including one for the second half of the rail guideway from Aloha Stadium to Ala Moana Center," HART Executive Director and CEO Dan Grabauskas said. "Our goal remains to build the highest quality system. And we are on the right path to get the job done."   The first 10 miles of the rail system from East Kapolei to Aloha Stadium is expected to open in 2017, with the full 20-mile line ready for service in 2019.   -END-   Media Contact: Scott Ishikawa. (808) 768-6172. cell: (808) 227-2350.