OK, maybe not exactly, but on Aug. 16, electric vehicles arrived on the scene at the Honolulu International Airport and are now available to rent. Just last month Gov. Abercrombie unveiled the first charging station at the State Capitol, and now this month we have an example of the private sector stepping it up with a fleet of Nissan Leafs and charging stations.

As we mentioned before, Better Place had chosen Hawai‘i to have statewide charging stations, and today we got to see it mapped out behind the podium as LG Brian Schatz congratulated the Enterprise team and noted the importance of public and private partnerships.

Better Place has partnered with Enterprise Rent-A-Car, a family-owned business that has decided to take this initiative forward. With 30 Nissan Leafs to hit the streets of Hawai‘i, the Better Place stations will have a total of at least 10-15 electric charging stations with some of the first being installed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, the Royal Hawaiian and Disney's new Aulani Resort on O‘ahu.

With tourism still leading our economy today, it’s interesting to see how green initiatives are creeping into this sector. Today rent an electric vehicle, tomorrow, greening of the Honolulu Airport? Who knows… but until then, I guess we could say that, yes, this was a victory for Enterprise today.