HONOLULU (AP) — Officials overseeing Oahu’s billion-dollar rail project have expressed concern in recent months about staffing issues that could potentially delay progress on the rail, according to documents provided by the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation. ADVERTISING HONOLULU (AP)
HONOLULU (AP) — Officials overseeing Oahu’s billion-dollar rail project have expressed concern in recent months about staffing issues that could potentially delay progress on the rail, according to documents provided by the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation.
Letters obtained by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser (http://bit.ly/28Z7iNG) say that HART officials noted Ansaldo Honolulu JV had “unacceptable” personnel vacancies as recently as April. The Hitachi-owned firm has a $1.4 billion contract to create the rail cars and run the operating system.
“Recent and near term vacancies of (Ansaldo’s) current key personnel and other critical project personnel are again causing major concern,” HART Project Manager Justin Garrod wrote in an April 13 letter.
Concerns over staffing shortages had initially surfaced in October. At the time, Ansaldo’s project manager said the firm had already filled most of the positions in question months earlier before HART first brought attention to the issue in July 2015.
However, the newly obtained letters show HART was still demanding that Ansaldo fill positions in September.
“It has been almost two months since HART provided notice to (Ansaldo) on this matter. Today there is very little progress made,” Garrod wrote Ansaldo Project Manager Enrico Fontana in a Sept. 15 letter.
HART had requested that Ansaldo fill about 15 positions between July 2015 and April 2016. Correspondence shows the company has filled at least five of the positions.
Fontana declined to comment on the matter and deferred questions to HART.
Garrod said in a recent email from the agency’s spokesman, Bill Brennan, that Ansaldo staffing is a “work in progress” and will continue to be monitored.
“Some Ansaldo employees have left to take promotions at other companies. Maintaining adequate staffing levels will continue to be a challenge throughout this entire project due to the location and extremely hot construction climate,” Brennan’s message said.
Garrod added that “no impacts have been realized due to staffing vacancies.” The company delivered the first train cars on time in March.
