We are being asked to begin paying an extra 13 percent on our general excise tax to cover an uncertain part of the unknown cost of some kind of commuter rail system, which someday may possibly go from somewhere to someplace else. Or maybe it won't. Our planners seem undeterred by the fact that these projects always cost more than projected, while usage is always less than projected.

• 1) A worldwide study showed that the average cost of rail construction exceeds projections by over 40 percent.
• 2) Usage is always far less than expected, and is mainly confined to 4 hours per day, 5 days per week.
• 3) Light rail is by far the most expensive method per passenger mile of moving people; nothing else even comes close.
• 4) Commuter rail uses more energy per passenger than a bus, or even an efficient car.

Are we now supposed to trust the planning, construction and management of Hawaii's largest-ever government capital project -- which is still completely undefine -- to the same people who cannot even figure out how to collect the tax to pay for this unspecified fantasy? Give me a break. Where's the revolt?

John Corboy is a resident of Mililani and a member of the Board of Grassroot Institute of Hawaii.