6. Unconnected Dots—Early Implementation of the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative Surface Transportation Goals

In parallel with the resource assessments and planning studies for the electricity sector, a rethinking of Hawaii renewable options in transportation was initiated. This work concentrated on road transport and was undertaken for the state through a cooperative agreement with the Department of Energy’s Natural Energy Research Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado. With the exception of sugar based ethanol there had been only limited thought given to renewable transportation options in Hawaii. The NREL studies took a comprehensive view of developments in automobile efficiency. These included higher Federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, ethanol and other “green fuels”, electric vehicles, and methods for reducing vehicle miles travelled. These early transportation studies formed a framework for planning, but proved highly optimistic vis a vis Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism DBEDT timelines established by Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative. Taken together, these studies suggested that there was only limited scope for state government intervention in road transport.