Something we don’t think about every day is Hawai`i`s sound identity. Hearing is among the most powerful senses because it has a direct link to both the rational and emotional parts of our brains. That’s why good jingles stick with us, and why the songs of our youth literally transport us back home. Sound shapes everything we do and feel.

Certain corporate giants have excelled at creating simple, powerful sound or sonic identities. Intel and NBC are two three note identities which come to mind (and ear) immediately. Sound identity helps to shape a customer’s perception of a product or service, or even a city. New York is the “city that never sleeps.” No one in their right mind could expect quiet at any hour of the day; sirens and horns are the background noise of the city. They are part of its sound identity.

Chicago is called the windy city – and though it is almost as busy as New York, the noise of traffic and mass humanity are only a small part of its sound identity. Wind is Chicago’s sound identity, and to know that, all you have to do is walk down the street on a fall day. Las Vegas’ sound identity is hard to capture because its visual identity is so overpowering. One has the sense of throngs of people and the rolls of the dice but its neon rules the night. Sonic identity is one of the tools of branding, along with visual identities and, as we get more sophisticated in our technology, so is scent. Sometimes you can invent a sound identity, as Intel and NBC have, but often you are blessed (or cursed) with one you can’t control.

Hawai’i’s sound identity is very soft and calming. As the trades caress your skin, they rustle the palms and encourage whitecaps in the blue ocean. Even on O’ahu, which is a sizeable city, it’s sound identity is remarkably low key and understated. For the most part, people don’t honk, scream or shout at one another. You could say it is a cross between city and country, but it definitely leans to country.

Sitting alone on a beach on a day when the waves are calm and the ocean is still, Hawai`i’s sound identity is silence. It is a warm silence that envelopes and protects you. When you get off the plane, returning from the mainland, it is not just the smell, but the sound of Hawai`i that welcomes you home.

And that leads us to rail. There are plenty of arguments against rail’s incompatibility with Hawai`i’s beauty. That rail will obliterate views from mauka to makai should be enough. But the impact on Hawai`i’s sound identity will be even greater. Imagine being downtown on a sunny day.

You take a break from work to have a sandwich in Tamarind Park at Bishop Square. Today, the noise of traffic around you is already close to 60 decibels. With rail passing by, which it will do frequently, the noise level will rise to 50% higher.

You can check with the experts. With every 10 decibels, the sound level doubles. Vancouver’s rail system cannot be extended into residential areas because of the noise of the skytrain – usually traveling at 70 decibels. 55 decibels is the maximum for sleep, and that is considered a standard in the developed world.

When you are sitting by the ocean on a windy day, the noise of the ocean and wind may rise to 60 decibels or even more. But that’s okay. That’s mother nature’s blessing to Hawai`i and a key part of our sound identity.

In other cities, they say “you get used to the noise.” But haven’t we gotten “used to” enough here? Isn’t it time we started loving our Aina as much as it loves us? Anyway you look at it, hear it, smell it or feel it – Hawai`i is not for rail and rail is not for Hawai`i.

Editor's note: PB consultants have confirmed that Honolulu train will NOT EXCEED 79dB(A) - higher than allowed by Hawaii’s Noise Laws - here the noise here: http://www.nonoise.org/lawlib/states/hawaii/hawaii.htm

Gloria Garvey is a Principal with The Brand Strategy Group

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