Considered as the largest single public works project on Maui and the first of its kind in the state, the Kahului Airport Consolidated Rent-A-Car facility was celebrated by state leaders Tuesday.
The new $340 million, multilevel CONRAC includes all significant rental car companies in one place and connects passengers with the airport through electric tram. A large, environmentally friendly project that took three years to get here and created hundreds of local jobs, Maui’s CONRAC is on schedule and on budget, lawmakers stated.
“The best part is this is funded with no taxpayer dollars involved,” Gov. David Ige stated during the event. “The $340 million dollars comes from car rental customers from across the world who visit Maui County.”
He added that the same funds are being utilized for a CONRAC at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport located in Honolulu, which is set for completion in 2021. CONRAC has been funded by a state Customer Facility Charge, a daily $4.50 applied to consumers who rent a car.
Kahului’s airport is the second busiest in the state when it concerns passenger volume, but its rental car industry brings the most funds in all of Hawaii, the state Department of Transportation’s data showed.
“It’s been a long time coming,” stated Maui District Airports Manager Marvin Moniz, who was applauded by event officials for supervising the project. “It’s good for the morale of the rental car companies.”
Robert Hunsinger, director of airport relations and properties at Enterprise Holdings, stated auto companies appreciate the performance of the new location. Companies with offices currently in the Kahului CONRAC consist of Advantage, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, EZ, Firefly, Hertz, National, Payless, Thrifty and Zipcar.
“The public will no longer be directed to scattered facilities around the airport,” Hunsinger stated.
