Public hearings set for bus plan

HILO — Hawaii County has big plans for its mass transit system, and it’s time for the public to weigh in.

The county has scheduled its first series of public meetings to get input on how best to implement an overhaul that includes a “hub and spoke” design for the Hele-On bus system.

Meetings will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 9 at the West Hawaii Civic Center, Oct. 11 at the Keaau Community Center, Oct. 12 at the Pahoa Neighborhood Facility, Oct. 19 at Waimea Elementary School and Oct. 24 at Aunty Sally Kaleohano’s Luau Hale.

The meetings are part of a $500,000 master plan conducted by consultants SSFM International. The County Council voted in 2015 to have the study done.

The 30-year-old Hele-On bus system has come a long way, said Curtis Sharp, a consultant retained by Mayor Harry Kim to help turn the troubled system around. What started as a system primarily geared to hauling workers from affordable Puna to the resorts in Waikoloa has expanded to an islandwide system.

“It’s a long trail, and a lot of it’s been by trial and error,” Sharp told a County Council panel earlier this month, adding the system “needs to go through some critical surgery.”

A hub and spoke system would make better use of resources by having the big county buses drive the major thoroughfares, picking up passengers that are brought to a community hub by smaller buses and vans. That process saves fuel and wear and tear while providing more flexibility and less walking to bus stops by passengers.

The first such hub and spoke is planned for Puna, if the public and county officials approve that concept, said Cheryl Soon, with SSFM.

SSFM consultants spent some time last spring riding the various bus routes and surveying riders. Among their findings: 29 percent of riders have been riding less than a year, about half of the riders have no other transportation option, 30 percent are students, 51 percent are riding the bus to work and 8 percent are tourists.

While 63 percent rated service as good or excellent, most of the 818 riders submitting written comments asked for new buses that didn’t break down. Others asked for more realistic timetables and more frequent bus runs, especially on Sundays and holidays.

County Council members said surveying only existing riders gives a skewed perspective.

“A bunch of my constituents don’t ride the bus anymore because they were so disappointed,” said Kohala Councilman Tim Richards.

Puna Councilwoman Eileen O’Hara has been hearing similar comments.

“Comments from the ridership alone isn’t sufficient to drive the development of our future mass transit system,” O’Hara said. “Many no longer ride the bus because of bad experience.”

A full 25 of the 55-bus fleet were out of commission when Kim took over in December because they needed major repairs. Since then, former Transit Administrator Tiffany Kai has been reassigned, and Sharp was contracted to bring the system up to snuff.

Kim plans to interview candidates for the permanent position next week.

The council budgeted $14 million this year for transit operations and improvements, up slightly from last year. Half of the money comes from the general fund, which comes primarily from property taxes, and half comes from the highway fund, collected from gas taxes and franchise fees to utilities.

Federal grants account for just $1.2 million of the budget, and with fares accounting for $960,000, the county pays an average $11.77 per rider. Riders pay $1-$2 fares, depending on their age and whether they have disabilities.

The county has recently applied for three federal grants, Sharp said.

No matter how many riders pay fares and how much the county gets in federal grants, there will continue to be a requirement for the county to chip in, said Soon.

“There’s no transit system in America whose ridership pays for the bus,” Soon said. “They all have a subsidy.”