Mayor Mufi Hannemann yesterday said he has new ideas on how to finance a mass transit system on O'ahu after studying the Las Vegas Monorail.

Hannemann was to return to Honolulu yesterday after wrapping up a trip to Vancouver, British Columbia; Washington, D.C.; and Las Vegas.

In Las Vegas, he met with officials of Transmax Group who were in charge of the monorail's $650 million financing.

He also met with Bombardier officials, who developed the system and operate it.

Transmax officials said the Las Vegas monorail is the only modern rapid transit system in the United States that was developed with private financing.

"The private sector participation in the system is overwhelming," Hannemann said in a news release. "I came away with ideas on how to encourage and entice public-private partnerships to finance Honolulu's mass transit system."

The Las Vegas system received money from hotels, casinos and other corporate sponsorship. The Nextel-Sprint wireless communications company sponsors the monorail's station at the Convention Center.

That station has a 15,000-square-foot wireless communications center featuring retail space, concierge service and a high-tech briefing center. The sponsorship generates $2 million a year for the monorail system, according to the news release.

The system serves as many as 50,000 passengers a day. Residents pay $1 per ride and visitors pay $5.

Hannemann began his trip on Monday in Vancouver, where he inspected that city's Skytrain. In Washington, D.C., he discussed mass transit with a number of senators.

He spoke with Patty Murray, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Transportation, Treasury and Housing and Urban Development appropriations subcommittee, which will be key to Honolulu obtaining federal money for a mass transit system.