Posted at 11:38 a.m., Thursday, December 6, 2001
Federal money to fuel transit projects
Advertiser Staff
Hawai'i transportation projects — from boats to buses to bridges — will get a $228 million boost in federal money under a bill awaiting President Bush's signature. The money is included in the 2002 transportation appropriations bill, approved by the U.S. Senate this week.
Honolulu's efforts to improve mass transit and reduce traffic congestion will receive the single biggest chunk of money, more than $20 million, said Sen. Daniel Inouye. That figure includes a $12 million appropriation to help implement the Honolulu Bus Rapid Transit project.
Expected to be finished in nine years, the program will include a hub-and-spoke bus network, contra-flow lanes on the H-1 Freeway and dedicated access for buses.
An additional $8.7 million will go to develop the city's new Middle Street Transit Center, including a new central facility for the city's HandiVan service.
Most of the money will be the state's regular share of money and grants provided by the Federal State Transit Administration and the Federal Highway Administration. Like in years past, though, the bill includes a number of other specific appropriations for new and continuing projects.
Among the projects:
• $5 million to improve the Sand Island Bridge. The money will be used to replace the bridge's deck with a nonskid surface, repair corrosion damage, recoat the steel deck and upgrade the end posts. The 40-year-old bridge, which connects Honolulu to its largest shipping and container port, is the primary access point for nearly every bulk good entering the state.
• $4 million to improve Saddle Road, which connects Hilo and Kona on the Big Island. This money will be used to design the eastern portion of the road improvements, Inouye said.
• $2 million for safety improvements on Farrington Highway on O'ahu's Leeward Coast, one of Hawai'i's most dangerous stretches of roadway.
• $1 million to help install a Global Positioning Satellite tracking system at the Sand Island cargo facility.
• $7.2 million to build a new support command facility for the U.S. Coast Guard in Honolulu.
• $5.5 million to upgrade ferryboat infrastructure around the state.
