Drive Time
Extra left-turn lane helps Kunia drivers

By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Transportation Writer

Those driving along Kupuna Loop near the Village Park/Royal Kunia subdivisions know how busy traffic can be, particularly on weekends when people shop at Wal-Mart.

The state Department of Transportation has reconfigured the lanes along North Kupuna Loop below Wal-Mart to help traffic flow more smoothly onto busy Kunia Road.

Michael Shishido of the Department of Transportation's traffic branch said the project was completed last week.

The new design will allow two lanes for left turns from North Kupuna Loop, just below Wal-Mart, onto Kunia Road. Currently, there is one left-turn lane from Kupuna Loop onto Kunia Road to deal with traffic heading toward 'Ewa Beach and onto the H-1 Freeway.

Traffic counts at this intersection indicate more than 400 left turns during the weekday morning and afternoon peak hours, prompting the state to convert the existing through lane into one that includes a left turn.

Work involved revising the intersection lane use and widening the makai-bound shoulder to allow for the extra turn. The city reprogrammed the traffic signal at that intersection Friday.

Signs have been installed informing drivers about the lane changes, but Shishido said "it'll probably take a couple of weeks for drivers to get used to."

Electronic bus stop signs: Starting about three weeks ago, downtown bus riders may have noticed the flashy new signs installed at the bus stops along King and Beretania streets near the intersection of Punchbowl Street.

We did a story in May on the electronic signs, which light up to show the general location of the bus along the "CityExpress!" Route B, which goes from Kalihi to Waikiki.

An electronic voice informs riders when the bus is about a block or two away.

The program uses the global positioning system to bounce a signal off the bus antenna to a satellite above and then back down to a wireless antenna atop each of the electronic signs.

"These first two signs are demonstration models to help us develop future signs," said Don Hamada, chief of the city Transportation Services' traffic signals and technology division.

For now, the electronic signs will not include the buses' exact time of arrival, because traffic or a long red light can delay them.

Bus rider James Reid said he liked the electronic signs, but said putting them eight feet high made it difficult to see at times, particularly when the sunlight reflects off the plexiglass covering the sign.

City officials said they needed to put the electronic signs up high to prevent vandalism.

Reach Scott Ishikawa at sishikawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.