The city recently completed the construction of a second restroom and refurbishment of the existing restroom at the Wahiawa Transit Center at a cost of $166,988.99.

Initially, the center, which welcomes 1,697 riders on TheBus every weekday, was built with a a single restroom that was reserved for use by operators of TheBus. However, in response to community concerns, a second restroom was added. Both restrooms are now available to the general public.

“Just like our parks, we want our facilities for TheBus to be clean and accessible and I hope the new and updated restrooms at this Central Oahu hub makes riding public transportation an even better experience then it already is,” said Mayor Kirk Caldwell in a press release. “The fact that this was done with significant savings to taxpayers is a testament to the Department of Transportation Services and the people who work there.”

The project was initially budgeted at $500,000, but savings totaling $333,000 were realized after engineers with the city Department of Transportation Services came up with the idea of renovating an existing storage room to create the new restroom, which proved to be both feasible and functional.

The $5.5 million Wahiawa Transit Center, which opened in October 2011, is between Center Street and California Avenue next to the State Civic Center. The ground level includes bus driveways and a staging area for passengers. The second level of the structure offers 58 parking stalls, 33 of which are available for users of TheBus park and ride.