HART: Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation Overview

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) is the semi-autonomous public agency responsible for designing, building, operating, and maintaining Honolulu's elevated rail transit system on the island of Oʻahu. This page covers HART's organizational structure, how the agency functions within Hawaii's governmental framework, the scenarios in which it interacts with riders and partners, and the boundaries that distinguish HART's authority from other transit bodies. Understanding HART is essential context for anyone navigating Honolulu's evolving public transit network, including the Honolulu Rail Transit System.


Definition and scope

HART was established in 2011 under City and County of Honolulu ordinance as a semi-autonomous agency separate from the city's Department of Transportation Services (DTS). Its singular statutory mandate is to deliver the Honolulu Rail Transit Project — a 20-station, approximately 19-mile elevated fixed-guideway rail line connecting the Kapolei area on Oʻahu's west side to Ala Moana Center in urban Honolulu.

The agency's scope includes:

  1. Capital construction — procurement, contracting, and oversight of civil, structural, and systems construction across all project segments.
  2. Systems integration — coordination of train control, communications, fare collection, and station technology.
  3. Right-of-way acquisition — negotiation and management of land rights needed for guideway and station footprints.
  4. Federal grant management — administration of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Full Funding Grant Agreements (FFGAs), which have committed over $1.55 billion in federal New Starts funding to the project (FTA, Project Profiles).
  5. Transition to operations — handoff of completed segments to an operations contractor, currently managed under a contract with Hitachi Rail.

HART differs from TheBus (DTS-operated) in a foundational way: HART holds the capital delivery function, while DTS runs day-to-day fixed-route bus operations across Oʻahu. For a broader look at how these agencies fit together, the Honolulu Transit Governance Structure page provides a comparative breakdown. TheBus and its route network are covered separately at Honolulu Bus Routes — TheBus.


How it works

HART operates under a Board of Directors appointed by the Mayor of Honolulu and confirmed by the Honolulu City Council. The Board sets policy, approves major contracts, and oversees the agency's executive director. This structure places HART within the City and County of Honolulu's governmental hierarchy while giving it procurement and operational autonomy distinct from standard city departments.

Funding flows through three primary channels:

HART's project has been structured in segments. The first operating segment — 9 stations from East Kapolei to Aloha Stadium — opened for revenue service in 2023. Additional segments extending toward downtown Honolulu and Ala Moana are under construction or in advanced planning. The Skyline Rail Stations Guide details individual station locations and connectivity.

The agency publishes project updates and financial reports in compliance with FTA oversight requirements. Cost and schedule performance data are reviewed by the FTA's Project Management Oversight Contractor (PMOC), an independent body. Detailed examination of cost escalation history is covered at Honolulu Rail Project Cost Overruns, and the full picture of federal funding mechanisms appears at Federal Funding — Honolulu Transit.


Common scenarios

HART interacts with riders, property owners, government bodies, and contractors across distinct operational situations:

Rider-facing interactions:
Riders encounter HART most directly through the Skyline rail service. Fare payment on Skyline integrates with the Holo Card Transit Pass, a stored-value contactless card that also works on TheBus. HART sets rail fare policy in coordination with DTS to maintain a unified fare structure; the broader fare framework is described at Honolulu Metro Fares and Passes. Riders with disabilities or qualifying income levels may access reduced-fare programs covered under Reduced Fare Eligibility — Honolulu and accessibility services described at Honolulu Metro Accessibility Services.

Property and construction interactions:
Property owners within the rail corridor have engaged HART through right-of-way acquisition processes. HART is legally required under federal and Hawaii state law to provide just compensation for acquisitions and to follow Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition policies (49 CFR Part 24).

Interagency coordination:
HART coordinates with the Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) on roadway impacts, with the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting (DPP) on station area development, and with the FTA on grant compliance. The Honolulu Metro Area Boundaries and Pearl City–Ewa Transit Connections pages provide geographic context for these coordination efforts.


Decision boundaries

HART's authority is defined by what it controls versus what falls under other agencies:

Function HART DTS (TheBus/TheCABUS) State HDOT
Rail capital construction
Rail operations (Skyline) Contract oversight
Bus route operations
State highway coordination
Airport transit connection planning Shared

HART does not have jurisdiction over TheBus scheduling, Park and Ride facility management (which sits with DTS), or Bike Share and Transit Integration programs, though it coordinates with the agencies that do. Honolulu Airport Transit Connections involve both HART (for future rail service) and HDOT's Airports Division.

HART's oversight boundaries are also defined federally: the FTA retains approval authority over major scope changes, budget reallocations above defined thresholds, and contractor responsibility determinations under the FFGA. Any project change requiring a formal grant agreement amendment must receive FTA concurrence before HART can proceed.

For the full context of how Honolulu's transit network functions as an integrated system — and where HART fits within it — the Honolulu Metro Authority home page provides a structured entry point to all related topics, from ridership statistics to transit environmental impact and economic development effects along the rail corridor.


References