LIHU‘E — The federal government released this week $8.44 million for all counties in Hawai‘i to buy new buses. Kaua‘i will receive $1.24 million of this money, according to a joint release by Hawai‘i’s legislators in Washington, D.C. “This grant
LIHU‘E — The federal government released this week $8.44 million for all counties in Hawai‘i to buy new buses. Kaua‘i will receive $1.24 million of this money, according to a joint release by Hawai‘i’s legislators in Washington, D.C.
“This grant helps residents get to work and school while avoiding the gas pump and reducing pollution in the air we breathe,” Sen. Dan Akaka, D-Hawai‘i, said in the release.
However, the money will not be used to expand services. County spokeswoman Mary Daubert said the Federal Transit Administration grant was awarded “specifically to replace vehicles to keep the existing fleet in a state of good repair.”
The money will come from the 2012 State of Good Repair Program administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
“These funds are not allowed to be used for operations — salaries, fringe benefits, fuel, repairs — and therefore cannot be used to fund increases in service,” she said.
The grant will allow the county to replace about 20 percent of its fleet, but there is a catch: The federal money comes with a county-match requirement of 20 percent, which amounts to $310,000. The county match is included in the county Transportation Agency’s operational budget for the current fiscal year.
The Kaua‘i Bus has 55 buses in its fleet. The grant will allow the county to purchase 12 new buses, according to Daubert. Each of the fleet’s large buses costs approximately $160,000, and each of the small buses cost approximately $110,000.
The county has one hybrid bus purchased three years ago at a $255,000 price tag. Daubert said the administration has no plans to purchase another hybrid bus with the funds that were just released.
“However, the purchase of hybrid and other alternative fuel powered vehicles will certainly be considered in the future,” she said.
The hybrid bus was put on the road a little more than two years ago. It runs on a energy-recovery system, in which a diesel-fueled engine recharges an electric battery. After a few months in operation, then-Executive on Transportation Janine Rapozo said the savings were “not much.”
A regular bus runs eight-to-nine miles per gallon, and the hybrid bus saves the county one-to-two miles per gallon.
The hybrid bus was also purchased with federal money and a 20 percent county-match.
All buses in the county fleet are operational, but on any given day, there are about six to 10 buses being serviced or repaired, according to Daubert. There are 10 buses used primarily as a backup for those being serviced or repaired, she said.
Daubert said that about once a year, the county Finance Department’s Purchasing Division auctions the county’s disposed assets, and this would include the buses, which are no longer operating.
O‘ahu will receive $5 million from this grant, Maui will receive $1 million and Hawai‘i Island will receive $1.2 million.
The Kaua‘i Bus operates Monday through Friday from 5:30 a.m. to 10:40 p.m., and Saturday, Sunday and holidays from 6:20 a.m. to 5:50 p.m.
Visit www.kauai.gov/transportation for more information, including bus schedule for different parts of the island.
