As the war in Iran drives up fuel prices, Honolulu's transit agency says it is paying the most it has ever paid for diesel to run city buses.
Department of Transportation Services Director Roger Morton says diesel prices have been trending up since roughly the start of this fiscal year, which began in July.
Right now, the city Department of Transportation Services is paying an unprecedented $5.66 per gallon of diesel.
“I went 10 years back to check the prices, and we've never paid that much before,” Morton told HPR.
The city's Department of Budget and Fiscal Services allocated DTS about $18 million to spend on diesel for the city’s bus fleet over the course of the current fiscal year, which ends in June 2027. Given the amount of diesel the buses need, Morton said that total breaks down to about $3.79 per gallon — well below what the department is currently paying.
If prices stay at their current level, Morton expects that the department may have to pay up to $27 million for diesel this fiscal year.
“It puts a substantial pressure on our operating budget,” he said.
According to Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s office, the fuel budget was formulated early this calendar year, prior to the Iran War’s impacts on gas and diesel prices. City spokesperson Scott Humber told HPR via email that the surge in fuel costs “could not have been anticipated during the budget formulation process and therefore was not reflected in the proposed budget amount.”
Morton said that DTS doesn't have a game plan yet for how it would contend with nearly $9 million of added fuel costs.
“The prices keep going up, and they're going up faster than we had anticipated. We’re in a holding position right now with (the Department of Budget and Fiscal Services) to continue to meet and devise a strategy,” he said.
