City bus, van fares
will rise on July 1

Prices for public school
lunches will also increase

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By Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.com

Fares for TheBus and the Handi-Van will go up Sunday, the first increase in six years.

It is just one of several state and county laws that take effect on July 1, the first day of the new fiscal year for the state and county governments.

Single adult fares for TheBus will rise to $1.50 from $1, while students will pay 75 cents instead of the current 50 cents.

Monthly fares will rise to $27 from $25 for adults and to $13.50 from $12.50 for students.

City officials say transit passengers need to take on a larger share of the burden for a service that is 75 percent subsidized. TheBus officials estimate only about $27 million of their $112 million budget this year is coming from fares. The rest comes from various subsidies.

Earlier this year, the City Council approved a new policy requiring fares pay between 27 and 33 percent of operations.

The new system would net about $5 million for TheBus and $400,000 for the Handi-Van.

Monthly bus passengers can offset the cost of the increase by purchasing a new $300 annual pass that, if divided by 12 months, would cost them the $25 a month they now pay.

Passes are sold weekdays at TheBus headquarters at 811 Middle St., 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visa and MasterCard are accepted. Passes also are sold at several stores on Oahu.

Also taking effect on Sunday include:

>> A state law that raises the price of public school lunches for about 90,000 Hawaii students to $1 from 75 cents, the first hike in school lunch prices since 1993. The increase will not affect about 60,000 students in the Department of Education's school lunch program who qualify for a low-income price of 20 cents.

>> A city law that allows taxi services to charge up to $2.25 for the first mile and 30 cents each subsequent mile. Currently, drivers can charge up to $2 for the first mile and 25 cents for each additional mile. The maximum allowed for waiting-time charges will go to 30 cents from 25 cents for a 45-second period.

>> A state law that allows sheriffs and police officers to increase fees for services including summons and subpoenas. The fees have not been raised in more than a decade.

>> A state law that allows the Office of State Planning to charge fees for Geographic Information System services and products. The office must adopt rules setting the fees.

>> A state law that allows local wineries to ship up to two cases of their wine for personal use directly to a customer in a state with a reciprocal shipping law. A Hawaii resident will also be able to purchase for personal use and have shipped to Hawaii up to two cases of wine from mainland wineries in reciprocal states.