A new red, white and blue bus will ply Honolulu roads during a month-long demonstration project.

The new bus isn't testing a new patriotic color scheme for the city's popular mass transit service. Rather, the 45-foot-long bus is being tested as an alternative to the city's current fleet of 40-foot-long buses and 65-foot-long articulated buses. City Transportation Director Wayne Yoshioka said the intermediate-sized bus could fill a niche role in Honolulu's 531-bus fleet.

"This is kind of like your mama bear: not too big, not too small, just right," he said during a news conference at Honolulu Hale yesterday. "This provides us the opportunity to better utilize our resources fully."

The bus is made primarily of lightweight composite materials in Anniston, Ala., by North American Bus Industries Inc. Diesel versions cost about $100,000 more than the city's $400,000, 40-foot, 37-seat diesel buses. However, the new buses promise to have lower life-cycle costs while resulting in less wear and tear on Honolulu roads.

The new bus will debut on the beach bus run, before eventually being tested on Route 1 (Kamuki-Kalihi), Route 40 (Makaha-Ala Moana) and Route 52 (Wahiawa Circle Isle).

The 46-seat bus will be tested for one month to gauge fuel efficiency, customer satisfaction and how well they work on Honolulu roads.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann said the evaluation of the "magic bus" is part of an effort to keep TheBus innovative. There's no timeline for making a decisions to buy the $500,000 bus.

"Obviously this is a demonstration project, but we're very sanguine about the prospects that this bus could in fact be a part of our bus fleet," Hannemann said.