Question: How much will single fares and monthly passes cost once the trains begin running? Will there be senior and student discounts? Will there be parking available at the stations and will it cost anything?
Answer: Oahu’s rail transit system is under construction, prompting regular questions from Kokua Line readers as the elevated rail takes shape; more than 5 miles of guideway have been built, starting in West Oahu. What is envisioned as a 20-mile elevated rail line with a total of 21 stations is planned to run from East Kapolei to Ala Moana Center.
Many details about the operation of the rail system remain to be decided with its opening years away, but the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation provided information to answer some of your questions.
Although exact fares have yet to be determined, initial plans do call for senior, student and other discounts to apply, as they do on TheBus, according to the HART website. Bus routes and the train will be integrated as a cohesive transit system, with passengers able to ride either or both using the same smart card, or electronic pass, a spokesman confirmed.
Fares, including discounted ones, will be determined by the HART board in cooperation with the city administration and the City Council.
There will be vehicle parking available at a few rail stations, but not most of them. As of now, there are four park-and-ride facilities planned, at the East Kapolei, University of Hawaii-West Oahu, Pearl Highlands and Aloha Stadium stations. They would provide a combined total of 4,100 parking spaces.
According to the plans, all 21 stations will have drop-off/pickup areas (commonly known as kiss-and-ride zones), including space enough for the Handi-Van to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. All stations also will have bicycle parking.
City bus routes will be reconfigured to “provide shuttlelike services to the rail stations from nearby communities and high-use facilities, like hospitals and shopping centers,” according to HART. That will be crucial, the agency says, to creating a comprehensive mass transit system that persuades commuters to ride both the bus and the train and leave their cars home altogether.
The cost of daily parking at the transit centers, if any, has yet to be determined. At public meetings, some people have suggested HART charge a nominal fee so that additional security and other amenities may be provided, a spokesman said.
Q: On Saturday, I drove down Farrington Highway in Waipahu for the first time in months. I noticed designs in the columns for the rail. Is this going to be done to every column? How much is this adding to the cost of the rail?
A: No, the embossed columns are reserved for the rail transit system’s 21 rail stations. Most stations will have six columns embossed with a design specific to that area’s ahupuaa. Each station’s unique pattern is intended to convey the history and culture of the community where the station is located. The hundreds of columns stretching between stations along the 20-mile route will not be embossed. An embossed column costs about 10 percent more than a plain one, according to HART.
Auwe
On March 12, a neighbor saw a tall, slim-built man in a black truck drop off his small dog on Maunawili Road at about 7:15 a.m. The man appeared to have his young son with him. The poor dog was found wedged in an area with the stream flowing. My husband and another neighbor got the dog out of the water, but it quickly ran away from them. What kind of role model are you setting for your child to see? Are you that irresponsible and cheap that you couldn’t take your dog to the Humane Society? Please think again, if you’re planning on “owning” any more animals. — Maunawili resident
Mahalo
This is rather delayed, but I would like to express my appreciation for the gentleman who came to my rescue on Feb. 20. I was returning home along Laau Street and somehow tripped and fell, causing a nasty cut on my head, which bled quite a lot. The gentleman actually gave me the shirt off his back to help stop the bleeding. I would like to at least replace his T-shirt if I knew who this was. At any rate, I want to acknowledge this spontaneous act of kindness. — Christine Urban
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