Hawaii Engineer Reacts: Hawaii's $12BN Railway Nightmare Explained @KienenKoga

Uploaded April 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

The Hawaii Rail Project has been one of the more polarizing construction projects that we've seen in the state. The Hawaii Rail Project is over a decade behind schedule and billions of dollars over the initial anticipated cost. But how did we get here? I'll give my thoughts on this video made by B1M as a Hawaii based professional civil engineer in the construction industry.

Watch and Support B1M's Channel Here: youtube.com/watch?v=3xnrhm1KcB4&t=224s

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$LEAVING CALIFORNIA 2021: Should You Move to HAWAII?! Seeing a bunch of other youtubers leaving California in 2021, I wanted to give my thoughts on the possibility of them moving to my home state, Hawaii! Feel free to follow me on instagram: @kikoga I’ve been seeing a bunch of my favorite YouTubers, Joe Rogan, Graham Stephan, Meet Kevin, and JK News all talking about leaving the wonderful sunny state of California. So this made me think, my home here in Hawaii is warm, with beaches and relatively desirable so would it make sense for Californians to move here? So probably the biggest issue that people are saying about leaving California is that the state income tax is so high going as high as 13.3%. People are seeing that you can make a living working from home, so those in those top tier income brackets are moving to avoid this tax without changing their employment status. But unfortunately, sunny weather must just come with higher taxes as Hawaii state income tax is right behind California going as high as 11%. So not much gain there. BUT, Hawaii’s sales tax is lower than California’s at roughly 4.7% as opposed to 9.5% in California. However, this difference is almost negligible considering that due to Hawaii’s geographical location, most goods are imported which jacks up the prices in relation to the mainland as seen in most fast food restaurants. But now we move along to the cost of housing in California vs Hawaii where we are about the same. The states that people are trying to move to without state income tax, Nevada, Washington, Texas, Florida, etc. you can you can get much nicer homes for the price that you pay. It also doesn’t help that typical salaries in Hawaii do not correspond with the high cost of living; see this report that shows Hawaii in the bottom 20% of the nation for physician salaries while maintaining our glory at the top spot for the highest cost of living for any state. This isn’t for just doctors, but most positions out there which makes it very difficult for most people to keep up. A lot of people who go away from college stay up in the mainland because there are so much more opportunities up there for them. Also, Hawaii being an island, you can’t really go anywhere without taking a 5+ hour flight, so for those who like long road trips and feeling free with so much surrounding land, this may not be the place for you. And lets talk about education. According to WalletHub, Hawaii is actually above California when it comes to provided education, but there are some things to consider. As a resident of California, you can go to top tier colleges in the UC System like UC Berkeley and UCLA at a fraction of the cost with in state tuition. However, the University of Hawaii is not the greatest school out there, so you will need to pay out of state tuition for your kids to go away for college if you choose to move here. And finally, like LA, Hawaii also has a homelessness issue which we used to lead the nation in, but gave the title to New York just this year. It is consistently an issue, but the problem seems to just be getting worse each year as the solutions seem more like just slapping a band aid on the issue. So why do I still live in Hawaii? it’s because I LOVE IT. There is no other state that allows you to wear a t-shirt, shorts and slippers all year round! Hawaii temperatures lows in the mid 60s and highs in the 90s. Hawaii’s beaches are also very clean compared to anywhere I have seen on the mainland with warm water. There are a lot of people that spend most of there free time there, BBQing, surfing, and having a great time all year round. And there’s always a beach at maximum 30-40 min away from you, and each one is special and picturesque in its own way. Hawaii is also a place that great to get out and go on a hike, eat great food and even swim with sharks without a cage like I did a year ago. But to me, the best thing about living is Hawaii is the family based culture. I don’t think there is another state out there with the mixture of race, religion, and culture like we have here. It is so diverse here and growing up here I really felt like everyone was family. We have a thing in Hawaii where everyone is an Aunty or Uncle even if we aren’t blood related, to the point that I honestly didn’t really know what a real Aunt or Uncle was until much later in my life. Looking at my graduation photos and seeing everyone come together was really cool to me and something that my friends on the mainland wishes they could have experienced. Thank you again for getting this far in the description, I appreciate your time!$

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