Honolulu City Council votes to raise public transit fares
“We oppose any kind of increases to TheBus fare or public transportation in general,” said Joli Tokusato, a Local 5 representative. “If you’re trying to make people use public transportation you have to make it the easiest way possible for them, and raising bus prices, especially for people who are working class … it’s not a good idea.
“I think it’s really a bad, bad thing,” Tokusato added. “… So please don’t touch TheBus transportation fares.”
Others agreed.
“Let me start with some facts: the transit fare increase is only going to bring $4 million extra,” Dale Vanderbrink, an Ala Moana-Kakaako Neighborhood Board member, said in his individual capacity. “When compared to DTS’ budget of more than $400 million it only accounts for 1 percent of their budget.”
He added “$4 million is not a lot of money for DTS, but it is a lot of money when obtaining it by nickel-and-diming the residents.”
“Bill 54 is gutting affordability in Hawaiʻi,” said Luca Cuniberti, a daily bus user and a member of the Hawaiʻi Youth Transportation Council. “It’s taking opportunities away from youth and forcing our kupuna, families and residents to pay more.”
Donald Sakamoto, with Citizens for a Fair ADA Ride, said he was “strongly opposed to this bill because it’s harsh for the people who are elderly and disabled who have to absorb these outrageous prices right now for our transportation.”
The nonprofit, Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice, also denounced the Council’s vote.
“Today’s decision to increase transit fares will strain the household budgets of our island’s working families, kupuna, students, and people with disabilities,” Abbey Seitz, the group’s director of transportation equity, said in a statement following the meeting. “At a moment when we should be making it easier to use public transportation, this vote moves us in the opposite direction.”
The nonprofit noted the fare hike comes despite data showing its disproportionate impact on low-income families.
“Over 20 percent of bus riders have household incomes below $20,000 a year, and more than half do not have a car at home. For these residents, public transit is a lifeline to jobs, healthcare, education, and groceries,” the nonprofit asserted in a news release. “Increasing its cost forces impossible choices between transportation and other basic needs.”
Meanwhile, the group is pushing for an alternative policy, dubbed Keiki Ride Free, which they say will provide zero-fare transit access for all youth 18 and younger across the state.
Hawaiʻi Appleseed also supports several bills at the state Legislature proposing “a simple, pass-free boarding system, funded through a state-level mechanism to reimburse counties for foregone fare revenue,” the group’s news release states.