A free bus fare system could be more accessible than some think, according to the newest report from the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice.
The team’s “Funding Free Transit” report predicts it would cost roughly $62 million annually to keep operations running as they are now. It states that on Oʻahu, about 15 percent of TheBus system’s operating costs are supported by fares—the remaining 85 percent is funded through public revenue.
To make up for the 15 percent of the budget that is currently supported by bus fares, the report suggests pulling from other existing sources, including the barrel tax, the Clean Fuel Standard or the state’s highway fund.
Malia Boksanski, Hawaiʻi Appleseed’s transportation equity policy analyst and lead author on the report, said there needs to be a general shift in perspective regarding public transportation.
“This isn’t a value question—people really see the value of offering fare free transit, so the hurdle is funding,” Boksanski told HPR. “Even though we say fair-free transit, you know, someone is ultimately paying for people to be able to ride for free. I think this report was really to get the ball rolling and kind of get this conversation started, but it is going to take serious investment.”