Kokua Line: What bus routes will change when rail starts running?

Question: What bus routes will change when the rail starts running? Where can I find out?

Answer: Oahu bus routes listed at thebus.org/Route/Routes.asp include notations in red text about changes related to upcoming rail transit service as the city integrates bus and train service. About two dozen bus routes will be affected. Hard-copy printed schedules are not available “at this time,” the website says.

Initially, “most changes to bus routes will be improvements to the frequency and availability of service with slight changes to the route alignment. There will also be new routes, to provide direct connections to the rail line. No Peak Express bus routes are affected in preparation for (rail) passenger service,” the city’s Department of Transportation Services says on its website.

DTS says the biggest change will be to TheBus Route A, “which will terminate at Pearlridge rather than extend into Waipahu, and no longer serve the Middle Street Intermodal Center and King Street. This shorter route will create a direct, high-speed and high-frequency (every 10 minutes during peak hours/15 minutes during off-peak hours) connection between rail, downtown Honolulu, and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Riders traveling from Waipahu can catch a train, then transfer for free to Route A at Aloha Stadium Station. Riders destined for Middle Street Intermodal Center and King Street will be able to catch Route 1L starting at Aloha Stadium.”

The first full day of rail passenger service is scheduled for July 1, after a grand opening the previous afternoon.

Q: Regarding the national state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people reported on Page A5 of Wednesday’s paper, what does the guidebook say about Hawaii?

A: Hawaii is not among the 23 states the Human Rights Campaign lists as having anti-LGBTQ+ laws on the books. On the contrary, its chart of major laws affecting LGBTQ+ people across the country says that Hawaii has both of two laws named as favorable for this population and none of the eight laws listed as harmful.

The HRC, the nation’s largest group devoted to advancing civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people “following an unprecedented and dangerous spike in anti-LGBTQ+ legislative assaults sweeping state houses this year,” it said in a news release.

Along with the declaration, it released a report, “LGBTQ+ Americans Under Attack” describing more than 75 anti-LGBTQ+ bills that have been signed into law this year, and issued a free, downloadable guidebook for the LGBTQ+ community “that includes health and safety resources, a summary of state-by-state laws, ‘know your rights’ information, and resources designed to support LGBTQ+ travelers as well as those already living in hostile states.” Find links to the report and the guidebook at hrc.org.

Mahalo

Mahalo to North Shore lifeguards Chris Baker and Perry Turnbull for assisting me at Sunset Beach on Sunday. My friends and I were on a training swim from Sunset Beach to Ehukai and back, but on the way back I got separated from them over the shallow reef at Rocky Point. They went inside and on to Sunset Beach; I went outside thinking I would rejoin them around the reef, but I lost track of them and continued swimming forward. When they reached the beach they noticed I was not there so they notified the lifeguards. Chris saw me swimming about 200 meters out going toward Kahuku, so he got on his rescue board and went out to retrieve me; by that time I was half a mile past Sunset Beach. When we got to shore Perry gave me a ride on his ATV back to Sunset. I had no injuries or ill effects, but I appreciated the lifeguards’ dedication and ocean skills in helping me. — Alton M.

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.