Central Maui Transit Hub built but unopened, more than 3 years after groundbreaking
More than three years after it broke ground in February 2021, the Central Maui Transit Hub is built in Kahului but remains unused by bus riders for reasons left unexplained by the Maui County Department of Transportation or the project contractor.
Maui County Council Member Tasha Kama, who holds the Council’s Kahului residency seat, said Wednesday that the hub’s completion has been delayed by contractor West Maui Construction.
“They have been dragging their feet completing that project,” she said. “And, it’s been going on and on and on, and that’s the big problem.”
Maui County Department of Transportation Director Marc Takamori has not responded to repeated requests for updates on the project.
This morning, Maui Now also reached out to West Maui Construction. The company’s website says: “Discover the difference with our construction expertise in Maui. For over 15 years, we’ve been setting the standard for excellence, delivering projects that not only meet but exceed expectations.”
During a Maui County Council Budget, Finance and Economic Development Committee meeting in early April, Takamori told council members that a certificate of occupancy is expected April 26, 2024, “or around that date.”
Takamori later clarified that the April 26 date for the certificate of occupancy relies on there being no further project delays. “The hub, if completed by then, won’t be immediately open to the public,” he said six months ago. “There will be a transition period that will happen, and the public will be notified of the opening date.”
To date, there has been no such notification.
On Oct. 4, Maui Now sent Takamori an email request for information. When there was no response, another email was sent Oct. 8. When there was no response, Maui Now submitted a request later that day for information using Hawaiʻi’s Uniform Information Practices Act on Oct. 8.
There has been no response other than an automated acknowledgment of receipt from Maui County’s UIPA portal.
This morning, Maui Now submitted another UIPA request to the Maui County Department of Finance seeking information about county expenditures for the project.
The County’s transit hub project partners are the state of Hawaiʻi, Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corp. and its project team including Fukumoto Engineering, Riecke Sunnland Kono Architects, Munekiyo Hiraga, West Maui Construction and Bowers+Kubota.
Government agencies that maintain public records have 10 days to respond to UIPA requests for information.
The project is located off of Vevau Street near Kane Street in Kahului. It will replace the current transit hub on the Wailuku side of Queen Kaʻahumanu Center.
The project is the first transit hub designed and built as a facility specifically for public bus transportation. It includes a ticket office, ADA accessible restrooms, shaded seating, bike racks, lighting and cans for trash and recycling.
In fiscal year 2020, the Maui Bus fixed route system had 1.37 million boardings. Work is expected to be completed by the end of the calendar year. The county Department of Transportation has an annual budget of more than $50 million.
The department’s fixed route bus service carried 1,276,817 passenger boardings in fiscal 2023, with an on-time performance of 97%. Ridership was expected to decline to 835,000 in fiscal 2024 and to 1,200,000 in fiscal 2025.
For commuter passenger boardings, the department reported serving 103,599 in fiscal 2023. It expects commuter ridership to increase to 185,000 in fiscal 2024 and fall to 104,000 in fiscal 2025.