‘Expanding the Kauai Bus for the Good of All’

The County Council is working on the county budget for the next fiscal year. I would like to share some information about how to ensure that the Kaua‘i Bus better serves our families and helps them save money.

It is time to expand the Kaua‘i Bus

Riding the Kaua‘i Bus saves a lot of money. A friend who rides the bus to work every day between Hanapepe and Lihue saves $2,000 per year, no small change.

The Kaua‘i Bus serves more than bus riders. By getting cars off the road, it serves everyone who uses county and state roads.  It’s a “win-win!”

Ridership demand on certain routes presently exceeds capacity. Bus routes at certain times are overflowing with riders. Bus riding in those situations is not comfortable and sometimes, riders are left behind, causing them to be late for work, school and other appointments.

A solution to increasing the capacity of the bus system is to put more buses on the crowded routes.  Increasing frequency to every half hour during rush hour will double the capacity of that route—and make it more convenient to catch a bus.

Kaua‘i must be ready for the future. Regular gas is priced around $4.65 per gallon now. If the price of gasoline increases to $5 a gallon, car transportation will become too expensive for many families and individuals, yet without expansion, the Kaua‘i Bus will not be able to accommodate the increased ridership. Expansion cannot happen overnight.  We need to start preparing now.

Expanding the Kaua‘i Bus will help our island community and our families become less dependent on fossil fuels and more sustainable.

Expansion of Kaua‘i Bus services is not possible without additional revenues

Two years ago, when bus service was expanded to Sundays and holidays, and till 10 p.m. on week days, it cost the county an additional $1,000,000 per year. Expansion will cost more this time because the Kaua‘i Bus baseyard is full, and more baseyard space is needed in addition to more buses and drivers.

Because the need to expand the bus is urgent, I have proposed an increase to the county fuel (gasoline) tax over the next three years. This is in addition to the mayor’s proposed fuel tax increase of 2 cents to cover on-going road repair and bus operations next year.  

Including the mayor’s proposed 2-cent increase, the additional fuel taxes would be as follows over the next three years:  3 cents, 2 cents, 1 cent. For the average 15-gallon car filled up four times a month, that would mean:    

2013-14: $1.80 more per month

2014-15: $3.00 more per month

2015-16: $3.60 more per month

At the highest increase (fiscal year 2015-16), the additional taxes per month will cost the driver of an average car less than a cup of coffee at Starbucks or a meal at McDonalds. This is partly because visitors will be paying their share of the fuel tax increases, too.

All of us making small individual sacrifices over the years will enable a signficant expansion of Kaua‘i Bus services, including more frequent buses, more bus shelters, and regional shuttles in Koloa-Poipu-Kalaheo, North Shore, Kapaa-Wailua, and Lihue-Puhi-Hanamaulu.

Many will benefit from bus expansion:  students, the elderly, people with disabilities, familes that want to save money and become less dependent on oil, drivers because the roads will not be as congested, the visitor industry which does not want its reputation to be tarnished by the traffic, and businesses because fewer employees will need parking.

How you can help

If you support expansion of the Kaua‘i Bus (or if you don’t), please testify at the public hearing at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 24, in the Council Chambers in the Historic County Building. Or, email your testimony in support of Bill 2484 and Resolution 2013-47 to  CouncilTestimony@Kaua‘i.gov. Expansion of the Kaua‘i Bus cannot happen without additional revenues, and expansion is urgently needed.

• JoAnn Yukimura is a County Council member and chair of the Council’s Committee on Housing and Trasnportation.  She can be reached at jyukimura@Kaua‘i.gov