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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Sunday, April 15, 2001



Bus transfer system defended by operator

By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Transportation Writer

The operators of the city bus system explained a new bus transfer policy Tuesday before the City Council.

The new transfer policy, which began in August, allows unlimited rides for a passenger during a two-hour span.

The discussion before the Council Transportation Committee was sparked by a bus driver who suggested that the new bus-transfer system be eliminated, because it reportedly decreased fare revenue.

The previous policy prohibited passengers from using the transfer to make round trips, using a two-colored transfer ticket system with one color for going east and another for going west.

City transportation director Cheryl Soon said the increased use of transfers by cash-fare bus riders — up from 25 percent to 29 percent after the new system was implemented — has not decreased bus fare revenue.

Roger Morton and Kenneth Stanley of O'ahu Transit Services Inc., which operates TheBus, said the transfer system has encouraged more people to use the bus during the mid-day, which is considered non-peak hours of ridership.

"If we can get more people to use the bus through the new transfer system for lunch and errands, that means more revenue coming in," said Stanley, company vice president of operational planning and marketing.

Morton said the company will provide more training for bus drivers on the new transfer policy.