Rethinking Roads
Shifting budget priorities to expand mobility options & reduce vehicle travel
December 2024
Executive Summary
Hawaiʻi’s transportation system is at a crossroads. Rising vehicle travel has contributed to increasing traffic congestion, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions, all while straining the state’s infrastructure and limiting mobility options for those who do not drive.
In fact, a significant portion of the state’s transportation budget continues to prioritize projects that increase vehicle travel, such as road widening and new lane construction, while neglecting alternatives like walking, biking, and transit that could benefit a large segment of the population.
This report analyzes the Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation’s (HDOT) spending patterns between Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 and FY 2024. Key findings of the report include:
Imbalance in Budget Allocation: Between FY19 and FY24, 66.3 percent of HDOT’s budget went toward projects that expanded vehicle capacity, while just 1.5 percent was directed toward reducing vehicle travel through alternative transportation options. This imbalance has led to a transportation system that exacerbates the very problems it aims to solve—higher emissions, more traffic, and unmet needs for those relying on non-automotive forms of transportation.
Rising Vehicle Travel: Vehicle travel is increasing across Hawaiʻi, contributing to unmet mobility needs, worsening traffic conditions, and environmental degradation.
Climate Risks: The current spending priorities are jeopardizing the state’s ability to meet its climate and energy goals, such as the mandate to decarbonize the transportation sector by 2045.
To tackle these challenges, this report calls for a reimagining of the state’s transportation budget to align more closely with the diverse needs of Hawaiʻi’s residents and the state’s broader environmental and public health objectives. Specifically, the report provides three key policy recommendations for HDOT:
Establish new budget priorities that reflect required vehicle travel reduction goals;
Increase budget transparency by disclosing vehicle travel impacts of proposed projects, and actively prioritize projects that reduce vehicle travel; and
Increase the amount of dedicated funding for the Safe Routes to School program special fund to support the completion of the state’s pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure network.
These recommendations are based on Hawaiʻi Appleseed’s analysis of current state of transportation spending in Hawaiʻi. This included a review of both the Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan for the period between Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2022 and FFY 2025, and transportation projects within the state’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget for FY19–FY24.
Vehicle travel—referred to as vehicle miles traveled (VMT)—was chosen as the central metric in this report, as it has direct connections to various health, safety and environmental outcomes. Reducing vehicle travel can improve air quality, cut greenhouse gas emissions, reduce traffic congestion, and enhance public safety.
Ultimately, our government’s transportation budget should reflect the need for an equitable system that prioritizes not just vehicles, but the well-being of Hawai‘i’s entire population.