Hanapepe resident Sherwood Hara, Kaua’i and Ni’ihau representative on the state Board of Education, opposes the proposed 100 percent increase in public-school bus fares. And he hopes others who feel the same way will turn out at the 6:30 p.m.
Hanapepe resident Sherwood Hara, Kaua’i and Ni’ihau representative on the state Board of Education, opposes the proposed 100 percent increase in public-school bus fares.
And he hopes others who feel the same way will turn out at the 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 21 public hearing on the matter at Wilcox Elementary School’s cafeteria.
The BOE and state Department of Education have scheduled a series of public hearings statewide on the proposal to raise the public-school student bus fare from 25 cents to 50 cents per student per one-way ride.
The proposal requires approval by the BOE and Gov. Ben Cayetano before it can be implemented.
Hara argues that such a “significant increase” will adversely impact Kaua’i families, and those on the other Neighbor Islands, that have several children who ride the buses and are still feeling negative impacts of a down economy.
The BOE and state Department of Education have proposed the fare increase in order to address chronic losses associated with providing student transportation.
Losses for the current school year will be around $2.8 million, and could jump to $4 million in the 2002-03 school year without the fare increase, according to a DOE student transportation official.
Hara pointed out that the BOE action proposing the fare hike happened before he was on the board, and that he would look at a “more-reasonable” increase.
But, he reiterated, he cannot support a doubling of the fare.
Kaua’i has a higher percentage of students who ride buses to and from the public schools than the statewide figure.
Statewide, around 29,000 students, or around 16 percent of the 183,629 public-school students, are registered to ride buses to and from school. On Kaua’i, 2,467 students, or over 23 percent of the total public-school student population of 10,443, are registered to ride buses to and from schools.
The three companies providing bus transportation for public-school students on Kaua’i are Akita Enterprises, Roberts Hawaii Tours, and Yamaguchi.
