The Honolulu City Council Budget Committee amended a bill that would allow companies that rent small vehicles, such as electric scooters to pay to reserve parking spaces.
The bill covers companies that own shared micomobility vehicles which it classifies as, “commercial transportation equipment weighting less than 100 pounds, that is available to “the public for short-term renting on a self-service basis.”
This would encompass bike-share company Biki, if another city council bill passes which would end the city’s pilot program agreement allowing company to use public property, including parking spaces, for free.
Although electric scooters are not permitted in Hawaii, Councilmember Joey Manahan explained that the council is attempting to be proactive.
“It’s really just establishing a framework because whether we like it or not these vehicles are becoming more and more prevalent on our roadways . . . and at some point we’re going to need to regulate them somehow,” he said.
One of the main amendments to the bill was the establishment of the cost per stall, which would vary from area to area, explained Dreana Kalili from the Department of Transportation services.
“The [amendment] that the committee is considering does set forth the fees for on-street metered and off-street parking,” she said.
She explained that parking per stall per year would vary from area to area.
A stall downtown would cost $2,475 per year. A stall in Waikiki would cost $4,380 per year, and all other on-street metered stalls would cost $1,350.
These numbers encompass up about a quarter of the maximum revenue the city could make from the metered parking.
Councilmember Tommy Waters suggested that the council consider charging more.
“If we’re going to take metered parking stalls away from vehicles then perhaps we should consider charging a bit more than we would otherwise make if we were to plug quarters into the stall,” he said.
The committee did not pass out a recommendation to the full council, and returned the matter for further consideration on November 13.
