01-24-2019, 06:56 AM
Why are people getting up at 3AM to ride a bus from Hilo to Kona for a $10/hour job?
terracore,
Here's an article about the Hilo to Kona resort bus ride which may answer your question. It's from 5 years ago, but I think most of the economic conditions still apply:
At 52, Kapeliela is resigned to the grueling commute, a fact of life in a place where jobs are scarce — and often found a considerable drive from where the affordable housing is. But that doesn’t mean the insanity of the commute is lost on him. At 3:15 a.m. on a recent weekday, Kapeliela looked around at the growing crowd of hotel workers gathered at the Hilo Bayfront bus stop and shook his head. "We’re all mental," he said.
About a half-hour before the bus arrived recently on a weekday morning, riders gathered under the Hilo Bayfront’s bus shelter, burrowed in their coats. Some had blankets over their shoulders or folded over their arms. "Your life is the bus," said Hilo resident Marsela Terreira, 53, who has been catching the early-morning bus for six years. "You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do."
Claude Carvalho, 50, started taking the early Waikoloa bus in the 1990s. He lives in Puna, so he commutes about 30 minutes to Hilo every morning, where he parks his car to catch the bus. Helene Kaupe, 54, also of Puna, agreed but said there are few alternatives. Salaries at the hotels, she said, are competitive. But living in South Kohala, where property prices are higher than Hilo or Puna, is out of the question.
"People can’t make it on minimum-wage jobs in Hawaii," she said.
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2013/04/2...s-the-bus/
We're not considering anything, but all options are on the table. - President Donald J. Trump 1/24/19
terracore,
Here's an article about the Hilo to Kona resort bus ride which may answer your question. It's from 5 years ago, but I think most of the economic conditions still apply:
At 52, Kapeliela is resigned to the grueling commute, a fact of life in a place where jobs are scarce — and often found a considerable drive from where the affordable housing is. But that doesn’t mean the insanity of the commute is lost on him. At 3:15 a.m. on a recent weekday, Kapeliela looked around at the growing crowd of hotel workers gathered at the Hilo Bayfront bus stop and shook his head. "We’re all mental," he said.
About a half-hour before the bus arrived recently on a weekday morning, riders gathered under the Hilo Bayfront’s bus shelter, burrowed in their coats. Some had blankets over their shoulders or folded over their arms. "Your life is the bus," said Hilo resident Marsela Terreira, 53, who has been catching the early-morning bus for six years. "You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do."
Claude Carvalho, 50, started taking the early Waikoloa bus in the 1990s. He lives in Puna, so he commutes about 30 minutes to Hilo every morning, where he parks his car to catch the bus. Helene Kaupe, 54, also of Puna, agreed but said there are few alternatives. Salaries at the hotels, she said, are competitive. But living in South Kohala, where property prices are higher than Hilo or Puna, is out of the question.
"People can’t make it on minimum-wage jobs in Hawaii," she said.
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2013/04/2...s-the-bus/
We're not considering anything, but all options are on the table. - President Donald J. Trump 1/24/19
"I'm at that stage in life where I stay out of discussions. Even if you say 1+1=5, you're right - have fun." - Keanu Reeves