An inter-island public ferry service linking the islands of Maui, Lanaʻi and Molokaʻi is back under consideration. Maui County is conducting a feasibility study — and has put some money into it.
Maui County has budgeted $300,000 this fiscal year to explore the options of a public ferry system.
Airline transportation is limited for Molokaʻi and Lanaʻi. Molokaʻiʻs last ferry service closed in 2016 because of falling ridership and financial losses. A ferry between Lahaina and Lana’i continues to run, but the company that operates it is up for sale.
Maui County Councilmember Gabe Johnson of Lana’i has spearheaded the county’s ferry initiative.
“The ferry is our lifeline to other services that aren't provided on the island of Lana’i, and Moloka’i would appreciate this," said Johnson. "We don't go to Oʻahu or Maui for snorkel cruises or whale watching. We're going there for doctor's appointments, dentists. Think services that we can't get on our smaller, more rural islands.”
Johnson points to how Maui’s public bus transportation is operated. The buses are owned by Maui County and operated under a contract with Roberts Hawaiʻi. He says a similar arrangement for the ferry service might be an option.
They’ll also look at how other coastal communities run their ferries — and what funding mechanisms are available to support such a plan.
“So the feasibility study says, first off, is it doable?" Johnson said. "Because when we talk about ferries, a lot of people talk about the Super Ferry. This is very different.”
Johnson said he’s a big proponent of public transportation.
“Because that's the biggest difference between private and public ownership. Private ownership would be profit-driven, whereas if the county owns it, if the governments own it, it will be service driven,” he said.
Johnson said he’s hoping the feasibility study can be completed in nine months.
“There is no such thing as a publicly run airline service, but there are plenty of publicly run ferries, right? And I think this is a perfect county for it. We’re a multiple island county, we have multiple small boat harbors that are owned by the state, they're not private harbors, so let's have a public transportation in public harbors. It just makes sense to me, you know?”
