By James Gonser
Advertiser Central Bureau
MILILANI — There have been six fatal crashes on Kamehameha Highway near Kipapa Gulch since December 1995, and all involved motorists who crossed the center line and hit an oncoming vehicle.
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| Kamehameha Highway’s narrow corridor near Kipapa Gulch has been the scene of six fatal crashes since December 1995.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Experts say improving the road would be too costly and unlikely to receive high priority, with the H-2 Freeway already providing a safer alternative route.
But the search for answers goes on, and residents concerned about the narrow corridor were eager to attend a transportation forum last night at the Mililani YMCA to hear lawmakers’ plans to make the dangerous stretch of road safe.
The forum was conducted by Sen. Ron Menor, D-18th (Waipi‘o Gentry, Wahiawa); Rep. Marilyn B. Lee, D-38th (Waipi‘o, Mililani); and Guy Ontai, R-39th (Wheeler, Mililani). A panel with state Department of Transportation acting Director Brian Minaai was part of the forum.
"There is no room for error there . . . because the road is so narrow," Mililani Neighborhood Board Chairman Richard Poirier has said. "There’s nowhere to swerve to avoid an oncoming car. There’s no place to park on the side if your vehicle breaks down."
In the most recent fatal crash, Campbell High School students Albert Torres, 17, and Reginald Castillo, 16, were killed on Nov. 15. Police said Torres lost control of a 1996 Acura Integra, crossed the center line and hit a 1999 Hyundai Elantra headed in the opposite direction. Four other people were injured in the crash.
Minaai said the only way to improve the road would be to widen the highway and bridge to four lanes at an estimated cost of $85 million. The cost is so high because portions of the hillside would need to be carved away, he said.
The two-lane bridge connecting Mililani with Waipi‘o has no median or divider. Visibility is limited, especially at night.
Residents said not only the bridge but also both sides of that section of highway in that area are dangerous. There are blind curves, and drivers often speed in the area and pass while driving up the hill into Mililani, they said.
Minaai said he doesn’t expect the Legislature to finance such an expensive project because other higher-priority state highway projects are competing for appropriations.
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