A new partnership with Oceanic Time Warner Cable will bring free Internet to Waikiki for the first time and enhance safety in the state’s top tourism district, city officials said Monday.

The public-private endeavor gives tourists and residents access to one free hour of Wi-Fi in Waikiki. The addition of 40 hot spots along Kalakaua Avenue and Kapiolani Park also expands the current network for Oceanic cable subscribers, who are part of a cable consortium that allows free roaming.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said demand for the new service, which launched unofficially last week, is strong.

"There’s already been more than 20,000 logins," Caldwell said.

Mark Rigg, director of the city Honolulu Emergency Services Department, said ocean safety personnel also will frequent the service since it will allow them to enhance safety through real-time data collection.

"We’re going to develop an app and give lifeguards iPads to document prevention activities and risks electronically," Rigg said. "We hope visitors and residents will use the Wi-Fi to access our beach safety website, which can tell them conditions islandwide."

Mark Wong, the city’s director of information technology, said the city has created splash pages that provide users with easy access to ocean safety information as well as information about events like the upcoming Honolulu Marathon. Users also are expected to use the free service to make phone calls — bypassing high roaming charges.

Wong said the project was about two years in the making. It was funded with a $25,000 gift from the Four Leaf Japan Co. and about $350,000 from Time Warner Cable.

"We haven’t had free Wi-Fi in important areas like Waikiki before," Wong said. "One of the goals of this department is to make it available to as many people as possible. This is really a brand for Waikiki. It’s envisioned as a catalyst to develop wireless networks throughout Waikiki."

Wong said Waikiki Aquarium was the first business to answer the city’s call for partners to expand Waikiki’s Wi-Fi Network.

"We really want to connect with and educate our visitors more," said David Nickles, Waikiki Aquarium information technology coordinator.

Vijay Venkateswaran, senior director of wireless business development for Time Warner Cable, said the service will bring Waikiki in line with other large cities.

"This benefits the public, so Time Warner Cable wanted to be a part of it," he said. "We knew this was a service that people wanted."

Minutes after the announcement, McKinley High School students, who were in Waikiki for a field trip, added more users.

"It’s better than mobile data," said 17-year-old Dyani Misiluti.

Seventeen-year-old Hokulani Dunn agreed.

"Wow. It’s way faster than what I get at home," Dunn said.

Wong said Monday that he tracked the service at 40 megabits per second.