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Waihee bus route added; Kula changed

Spur to Makawao eliminated; changes to take effect July 1

Beginning July 1, the Maui Bus will launch a new Waihee Villager route and change the service on the Kula Villager route.

The new Waihee Villager route No. 8 will begin at the Queen Ka’ahumanu Center with stops in Kahului, Wailuku and Waihee. It will operate five times a day, every three hours, beginning at 7:15 a.m. with the last bus departing at 7:15 p.m.

The Kula Villager route No. 39 is eliminating service to Makawao. It will instead add direct service to Kahului and go by a new name of Kula Islander route No. 39.

Kula Islander will begin at 5:56 a.m. in Keokea, operating every three hours, with the last bus departing at 8:56 p.m.

Maui County Transportation Director Don Medeiros said the new Waihee Villager route arose from a Waihee Shuttle Feasibility Study completed in March by DanTec Associates. It was funded by a $50,000 appropriation by the County Council.

A written survey was distributed to residents, and community meetings were held to assess the community’s needs to expand service in the area, Medeiros said.

The study recommended a limited fixed-route service five times each day between Waihee and the Maui Bus transit hub at the Queen Ka’ahumanu Center. This will allow passengers to connect with other buses to South, West, Upcountry and within Wailuku and Kahului, Medeiros said.

As for the Kula Villager route, it was underutilized with only about 40 boardings per day, he said.

Rather than eliminating the route, the same Waihee Shuttle study proposed to reduce the Kula Villager service to five times a day and to add the new Waihee Villager route at the same cost.

The Makawao section of the Kula Villager route only had about 10 boardings per day. The low number of boardings combined with the distance and time to traverse the Kula route led to the termination of the Makawao section of the route.

Maui Economic Opportunity does offer limited free service to those in the Makawao area who previously used the Maui Bus, Medeiros said. To make reservations, passengers should call MEO Transportation at 877-7651.

The Kula Islander and Waihee Villager bus schedule and maps are posted on the county website at mauicounty.gov/bus.

Riders can track their bus in real time and get arrival predictions using the Maui Bus app, available on iOS, Android and mauibus.org.

Maui Bus fares are $2 per boarding or $4 per daily pass. Monthly passes also are available.

For more information, contact the county Transportation Department at 270-7511.

* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.

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