Honolulu Weekly

Hawaii Superferry’s new advertising campaign doesn’t have everyone oohing and aahing. In fact, some claim that HSF’s full-page ads are outright deceptive.

Already hot under the collar, some activist groups opposed to the Superferry are even more fired up after the appearance of a large ad in seven neighbor island newspapers.

The ad, which is the first in what Superferry CEO John Garibaldi calls a ’series of informational print ads,’ touts the Superferry as a ‘real alternative for inter-island travel –one that’s truly convenient and affordable.’ The ad directs the reader to the HSF website for more information.

On the site, the fares that are listed do indeed look like a good deal. However, those enticing rates are only for one-way trips between either Maui and Honolulu or Honolulu and Kaua’i. And if you look at the line of fine print below the fares, you will see that the fuel surcharge is not reflected in the listed fares.

That surcharge can add up to a lot of money.

Dick Mayer, a retired economics professor and Maui resident, crunched the numbers on Superferry’s rate structure. He believes that HSF’s claim that the Superferry will be an economical alternative to inter-island air travel and car rental is misleading.

According to HSF’s approved application to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), the surcharge is based on the price per metric ton of marine diesel fuel. If that price exceeds a benchmark of $300 per metric ton, a 2 percent increase in the price per ticket (both passenger and vehicles) for each 10 percent increase in fuel costs is levied on the consumer. Although the published rates on the site include base fees and taxes, they do not reflect additional fees and taxes accrued by the surcharge.

According to Mayer’s research, the average cost of delivered marine diesel fuel in Hawai’i is $760 per metric ton. This means if the Superferry were to begin operations today, the fuel surcharge would be 28 percent, not including additional fees and taxes.

HSF claims in their PUC application that ‘a family of five traveling from Maui to O’ahu would pay $530 for ferry fare, including their own car. The same family traveling by air would pay approximately $1,076 for airfare, rental car and parking.’

In all fairness, these prices were arrived at prior to the competitive $29 and $39 inter-island fares we are now seeing, and at the time may indeed have been more economical.

Considering the new, lower air fares, Mayer calculated the costs for a family of four with an infant under 2 traveling with their vehicle round-trip from Maui to O’ahu and back. (HSF charges full fare for children over 2 years old). His rate calculations include the fuel surcharge along with additional non-inclusive fees and taxes, and are based on HSF’s advertised advance purchase web fare rates.

The result: It would cost this family $852 to park at the airport, fly and rent a van for five days; compare that to the $968 it would cost for the family of five to take the Superferry on an off-peak day (Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday). According to Mayer, the family would save $116 by flying and renting.

Meanwhile, Mayer claims that on a Superferry peak travel day, the same family would pay $1,122 to use the Superferry. Air travel, parking and van rental would cost $912. The savings for the family–$210.

Travel from Maui or Kaua’i to the Big Island is another story altogether, according to Mayer. His calculations suggest that on off-peak travel days it would cost the same family $2,091 to travel by Superferry. It would be $1,165 for air, car and parking; $926 less than the Superferry’s ‘affordable’ fares. And peak travel days on the Superferry for the same family, same route, would be $2,398 as opposed to the $1,309 it would cost for air, parking and van rental — a whopping $1,089 more.

With the crisis in the Middle East, economic forecasters are predicting a climb in crude oil prices. Of course, this adds up to even higher fuel surcharges and additional fees and taxes.

HSF spokesman Terry O’Halloran confirms that rising oil prices would affect the price of travel. ‘Fuel prices have gone up recently and as such would result in a surcharge to our existing fare structure,’ he writes in an e-mail response to our questions.

O’Halloran also mentions that the fares may be changing. ‘HSF fares are being reviewed based on constructive comments we have heard from the public,’ O’Halloran writes. ‘A fare structure that would provide a discounted fare for passengers wishing to travel between neighbor islands is under consideration.’

Considering HSF’s current schedule, which was revised a couple of months ago, the only feasible neighbor island through-trip is Maui to Kaua’i one-way. A return trip from Kaua’i to Maui would require an overnight stay in Honolulu, as would other neighbor island to neighbor island travel.

And if you combine Mayer’s findings with the additional cost of overnight lodging in Honolulu, it is no wonder why some aren’t seeing anything ‘convenient and affordable’ about Hawaii Superferry.

HSF will be launching an aggressive publicity campaign, with several large ads in neighbor island newspapers and radio advertising. Garibaldi states in an e-mail correspondence that the ‘[f]uture informational ads will focus on addressing community concerns as we continue our communication efforts.’

Garibaldi says that the ads will not be replacing the mandatory public meetings as ordered by the Legislature earlier this year.

‘Our plans are not meant to replace our on-going community outreach, but rather are intended to serve as a complement to that effort,’ he writes. ‘We are aware that this doesn’t replace face-to-face interaction, so we will continue to meet with as many different groups as possible to answer their questions and listen to concerns.’

Currently, Maui County has joined a lawsuit brought forth by Maui Tomorrow, Friends of Haleakala National Park and the Kahului Harbor Coalition. On Kaua’i, the People for the Preservation of Kaua’i have circulated two different petitions and gathered over a 1,000 signatures urging the state to order an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Nawiliwili Harbor. There are ideas in the works for an online, statewide petition to demand HSF provide EIS’s for all four harbors to be affected.