Across Hawaiʻi, families are struggling to make ends meet. While housing rightly dominates the cost-of-living conversation, transportation is also quietly draining household budgets.
Vehicle maintenance, insurance and gas quickly eat into a family’s housing and food budget. At the same time, transportation is our state’s largest source of climate pollution.
We have an opportunity to reframe the conversation — and to act. Investments in multimodal services and infrastructure are not just climate strategies; they are meaningful ways to reduce island residents’ cost of living.
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That truth came into sharp focus with the landmark settlement in Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation.
In 2022, 13 young people — ages 8 to 18 — sued the state, arguing that a transportation system built around fossil fuels violated their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment. The case was rooted in Article XI of the Hawaiʻi State Constitution, which not only mandates conservation of natural resources but affirms residents’ right to defend that mandate in court.
In 2024, the state settled, committing to align transportation policy with Hawaiʻi’s climate goals for a carbon negative economy by 2045. Among other outcomes, the settlement resulted in a plan for HDOT to reduce emissions, and a map of multi-modal improvements to be implemented within the next five years.
The message of the settlement was clear: our transportation system must change. But the opportunity before us is bigger than compliance. The same reforms that cut emissions can also lower costs for working families.
The price tag of our current, car-dependent system is staggering. In 2025, the public cost of the vehicle economy in Hawaiʻi was estimated by the Ulupono Initiative to be $14,400 per taxpayer, or $33,600 per household, regardless of vehicle ownership. The additional private cost of vehicle ownership is substantial — an extra $21,800 per household, per year.
Given this, it is unsurprising that transportation is, on average, the third largest household expense in Honolulu.
The cost of transportation is also regressive. In 2022, the average U.S. household spent 16% of their after-tax income on transportation, while low-income households in the U.S. spent an average 30% of their after-tax income on transportation.
Solutions To Lower Transportation Costs, Emissions
We cannot widen our way out of this problem. For decades, we have poured billions into expanding roads that lock families into costly car dependency.
A different approach — investing in reliable public transit, safe sidewalks and crossings, and protected bike lanes — offers a path to both fiscal and environmental resilience. Multimodal infrastructure reduces crash costs and health care spending, and improves people’s mobility options.
At the same time, we must acknowledge reality: many households will continue to rely on driving, especially in areas where alternatives are still limited. That makes electrification essential. Electric vehicles have significantly lower fuel and maintenance costs over time. Ensuring that lower- and middle-income families can access those savings is a matter of equity.
Two bills before the Legislature this session offer immediate, practical steps forward:
- House Bill 2030 and Senate Bill 2691 establish an electric vehicle rebate program targeted to lower- and middle-income households, helping more residents access the inherent savings of driving electric and shift to owning cleaner vehicles.
- House Bill 1620 redirects special funds already collected to construct new electric vehicle charging stations in under-served communities throughout the islands, which compliments the electric vehicle rebate program.
- House Bill 1879 implements a “Keiki Ride Free” transit program to provide fare-free transit for all youth across the state. The Keiki Ride Free program is especially important for young people. According to a recent report from Hawaiʻi Appleseed, eliminating youth transit fares could save families hundreds to thousands of dollars per year, help young people access school and recreation, and lower emissions.
These proposals are not silver bullets. But they represent a shift in mindset. Transportation policy is not just about moving cars; it is about moving people — affordably, safely and sustainably.
In the wake of the Navahine settlement, lawmakers have both a legal obligation and a generational responsibility to cut emissions. They also have an opportunity to confront one of the most persistent drivers of Hawaiʻi’s high cost of living. By investing in multimodal infrastructure, fare-free transit for youth, and equitable electrification, we can protect our climate and put money back into the pockets of local families.
We do not have to choose between caring for our ʻāina and caring for our communities. If we get transportation policy right, we can do both.
