Former Gov. Ben Cayetano’s campaign team revised the cost of the transit plan he unveiled last week, increasing the projected cost to $1.5 billion from $1.2 billion.

The cost of construction has not been revised, said Cayetano staffer Sam Callejo. Instead, the total price tag was increased to include a 20 percent contingency plus finance charges, making the plan a more “apples and apples” comparison with the city’s $5.26 billion rail
transit plan.

Cayetano has promised to cancel the rail project if he is elected mayor in next month’s election against former city Managing Director Kirk Caldwell.

Cayetano’s Flexible Affordable Smart Transportation plan calls for an estimated $240 million for contingencies and $70 million in finance charges, said Callejo, who was Cayetano’s chief of staff when he was governor, and former finance director for the late Mayor Frank Fasi.

The FAST project calls for a broad expansion of express routes between Central and West Oahu and downtown Honolulu, an express lane for buses and other high-capacity vehicles along Moanalua Freeway, a reversible "flyover" between the H-1 viaduct and Hilo Hattie’s on Nimitz Highway, and several traffic-relief measures through the city.

The plan incorporates and expands upon previous traffic ideas proposed for Honolulu, including the Bus Rapid Transit proposal devised by then-Mayor Jeremy Harris about a decade ago.

Callejo said initial estimates show planning and design to cost about $60 million, annual operating and maintenance costs at about $20 million and $1.1 billion for construction and equipment. The largest share of that, about $600 million, would be required for construction of the two-lane, reversible flyover, which essentially is a 2.2-mile extension of H-1 at Nimitz.

About $700 million would come from city sources, $200 million from the state and $300 million from the federal government.

Cayetano believes FAST would be eligible for fixed-rail federal funding sources based on recent guideline changes, Callejo reiterated. The city is awaiting final approval of $1.55 billion in federal money for the rail plan.

The Cayetano campaign anticipates releasing more details about the project soon, Callejo said.

The Caldwell campaign Wednesday issued a critique of Cayetano’s plan, insisting it will do little to lessen traffic for West and Central Oahu commuters and worsen traffic for East and Windward Oahu motorists.

"What Cayetano offers is absurd and will not fix Oahu’s growing traffic problems," Caldwell said in a news release. "His plan to add Bus Rapid Transit bus lanes will take away from the crucial lanes we currently have, and drivers will have to squeeze into other lanes, which will only exasperate and worsen congestion."

Caldwell also questioned the cost and timetable of the plan, estimating FAST will cost $2.5 billion to $3 billion and "will take years."

Callejo said the Cayetano campaign is reviewing the assertions. "We’re working on responding to each and every one of those items."