It's been said that democracy is not the perfect form of governance, but that it's way ahead of whatever's in second place. One fact about democracy is that it involves debate, flexibility and compromise.

All of these characteristics were evident in the City Council's recent decisions approving the fixed-guideway transit system.

Last December, after considerable public debate and testimony, the council voted to approve a 30-mile fixed-guideway system that runs from Kapolei via the airport and/or Salt Lake to the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, with a spur into Waikiki. Councilman Charles Djou was one of only two council members to vote against that alignment, which is referred to as the Locally Preferred Alternative and represents the eventual full route of the transit project.

The next decision before the council was to decide which segment of the LPA should be built first. This initial phase is referred to as the Minimum Operable Segment.

To qualify for federal funding, selection of the MOS must meet strict ridership and cost criteria. Of all the various proposals that were put on the table, only two met those federal requirements; the East Kapolei to Ala Moana route, via either the airport or Salt Lake. All others, while seemingly logical, would actually have killed the project since they failed the federal-funding criteria.

As a firm believer and supporter of a fixed-guideway system, my first choice was the airport route. However, when it became apparent that this route did not have enough votes to be approved, I proposed an amendment that replaced the airport segment with the Salt Lake segment.

While not my preferred choice, the Salt Lake route does serve thousands of local residents and stands the test of federal criteria. Rather than let the project die for lack of a majority vote, I opted to support the Salt Lake route and keep the project alive.

Die-hard opponents of transit will never be pleased and continually will attempt to derail the project at every possible decision point. Public criticism and flippant comments alluding to back-room deals and political payoffs were merely unfounded rhetoric designed to cast baseless aspersions upon those who supported the project.

What evolved was simply practical, prudent politics that helped to keep the transit project alive — a project that is vital to Honolulu's future.

While it's easy for transit naysayers to bemoan the route and harp on where the MOS doesn't go, realistically we know it cannot go everywhere at once.

In the long run, the policy of the city is to build the entire LPA. That means we will go to UH-Manoa, to the airport, to the west end of Kapolei, and to Waikiki — just not right away.

To jeopardize the entire project over objections to the route of just the initial segment is simply shortsighted and irresponsible. Given the financial and political realities of the project, if we hadn't selected this MOS, Honolulu's transit future would have been lost, once again.

As we move forward, it's important to keep in mind where the first segment of the project will go and whom it will serve. With a starting point near the site of the new University of Hawai'i-West O'ahu campus, the transit system will provide a viable and much-needed travel alternative to residents of the rapidly growing 'Ewa/Kapolei area. This is precisely where the bulk of our traffic now originates, and where thousands of new homes will be constructed over the next several years. This region of O'ahu desperately needs transit, and the selection of an MOS that meets those needs is clearly the appropriate first step in O'ahu's transit future.

Councilman Gary H. Okino is the chairman of the Public Works and Energy Committee. He wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.