HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-35 MTS minutes 25Aug15Communication No. 2015 -35
PCDP Mass Transit Subcommittee minutes, August 25, 2015
August 25- In attendance: June Conant, Rusty Jones, and Jon Olson.
June and Hannah attended the East Hawaii Disability Legislative Forum on August 20 and had an opportunity
to speak to both Greggor Ilagan and Danny Paleka. The forum included State Senator Russell Ruderman, State
Representative Joy San BuenaVentura, Valerie Poindexter, Hawai'i Council Rep, District 1 and some other local
representatives from various public groups. The focus was on jobs, housing and transportation for the
disabled population. It was the first to be held and we felt very worthwhile to allow those attending to meet
their local and state legislators. There were also booths with agencies which can assist different needs
June brought the maps prepared by Civil Defense of the 5 main areas of Puna so the committee could start
assessing the possibilities of hub and spoke routes. Jon, Rusty and June are more familiar with the lower Puna
area so all the paved roads were highlighted that could connect and create a loop. There are quite a few roads
in this area which are paved but may have problems in navigating a bus. A van may be more appropriate.
The proposed Mass Transit Master Plan was discussed and several concerns were voiced.
1. Will there be input prior to the RFP being written? If the request does not contain the right
requirements, the result will not be what is needed.
2. Will there be opportunities to critique the plan as it is being written? We feel that there should be a
means to be able to critique the plan.
3. What is the timeline for completion of the plan? Will it be done in 6 months? Will it be completed
before the next election?
4. Will there be a forecast for ridership capacity? We feel it is important for records of current ridership
along with the projected population increase be analyzed.
5. Will any of the funds for the plan be reimbursed by the State DOT or Federal monies?
June will be attending the community forum hosted by Danny and Greggor tomorrow in Pahoa. She will
deliver a list of these concerns to them. She said she has questions she sent to Tiffany on 6 -3 -2013, soon after
the Hele -On service began in HPP and before she was on the MT subcommittee. She rode the bus a number of
times to learn how the system worked and never received answers to her observations and concerns. She will
also give a copy of those to the Council reps.
The next meeting will be Tuesday, September 22, 2015 at 3:30 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
June Conant