Fare hike would be the maximum allowed

By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer

Proposed bus fare increases would push fare collection to the maximum percentage allowed under a City Council rule that limits how much O'ahu's public transit system is subsidized by the public.

Dennis Egge of Salt Lake testified yesterday before the City Council on bus fare increases. A bill tentatively passed by the city yesterday would have riders paying 33 percent of the bus' operating budget. Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser

The policy was set up largely to make it easier to raise fares so that bus operations were not dependent on tax revenue, Council Chairman Gary Okino said.

"The subsidy percentage kept growing bigger and bigger, and raising bus fares is always something that's difficult to do," he said. "Past councils kept putting it aside. It was growing, to me, a little out of control, but it's difficult for politicians to raise fares."

But this year, the system's 33 percent cap meant that fares could not easily be raised enough to cover salary increases that bus workers sought.

The bus budget included money from a fare increase that kicked in on July 1, which would have boosted fare revenue to about 30 percent of operating costs this year.

The council tentatively approved a bill yesterday to further increase some fares and leave riders paying the maximum 33 percent.

If given final approval next month, the changes are expected to raise an extra $6.8 million for the bus system to avert service cuts and pay for bus-worker benefits.

But fares could not be increased more to pay for raises unless the council increased the 33 percent cap, Okino said. There was no talk of doing so, he said.

Dozens of bus riders blasted the pending fare increases at a hearing yesterday, but Mayor Jeremy Harris said he believed some riders weren't paying enough.

"Our position is the bus riders ought to pay a third of the cost of the service that they receive," he said. "The taxpayers and the people buying gasoline and paying gasoline tax are paying over 70 percent right now. ... Right now the costs are not fairly allocated."

He said bus service costs the city $1.72 per ride, but that seniors pay an average of 4 cents per ride by using passes and paying low fares.

"I think they should pay more; I think they can pay more," Harris said. "And from the seniors I talked to, I think they want to pay more. All the seniors I talked to are happy to pay a quarter of a bus ride that costs $1.72, recognizing that the rest of it is highly subsidized by the rest of the taxpayers on this island."

Virtually all U.S. public transportation systems are highly subsidized, and Okino said it is clear that O'ahu's system helps the entire island.

"There's a great public need to reduce traffic congestion, and citizens should be willing to pay for that," he said. "It benefits everyone, whether you ride the bus or not."

Advertiser staff writer Lynda Arakawa contributed to this report. Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.