Kahalu'u plan for stoplight raises concerns
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KANE'OHE — Some Kahalu'u residents fear that the installation of a stoplight at King Intermediate School will aggravate traffic congestion on one of the two main routes to Honolulu and want the Kane'ohe Neighborhood Board to consider alternatives.
In November, the Kane'ohe Neighborhood Board asked the city to include the traffic light in its Capital Improvement Program after students and school officials complained about pedestrian accidents and near-misses at the campus.
At a meeting Monday, Kahalu'u residents and members of the Kahalu'u Neighborhood Board suggested alternatives, including the creation of bus pull-off areas at three locations on Kamehameha Highway near the school, at Halaulani Street, Ahui Nani Place and Windward Mall.
While these and other alternatives are being explored, a traffic monitor could provide short-term protection for the children, said Kahalu'u resident Ken LeVasseur.
But state-financed monitors are provided to only elementary schools and someone would have to obtain an exemption for King to keep the school from having to pay, LeVasseur said.
King officials have already said the school cannot afford a traffic monitor.
"I'm strictly against a light system," said Art Machado Jr., a Kahalu'u Neighborhood Board member who said he stood with a policeman on duty at the school one day. "The bottom line is kids 12 to 15, with their short attention span, need to be supervised. Even when ... (the policeman) blows the whistle the kids would run around the front and the back of the bus."
Morning rush hour is the worst time at King, with 40 to 50 students at a time pouring off the city bus and into the street before it's safe to cross the road, school officials said.
Money for the proposed traffic light is part of the city's Capital Improvement Program for the 2002-03 budget, which is expected to be approved this month. If an alternative is chosen, the $200,000 for the light could not be used.
Participants at the meeting, also attended by city bus and transportation officials and Kane'ohe residents, suggested that the Kane'ohe board broaden its request to include money for improvements for pedestrian safety and traffic flow on Kamehameha Highway.
Both boards are expected to discuss the issue at further meetings this month.
The city Traffic Engineering Division is already conducting a study to determine whether a traffic light is warranted, said Paul Won, division head. The study could be expanded but a consultant may be required if land acquisition is a factor, Won said. That could be the case with the proposed bus pull-off areas.
"It's a good idea to look at other solutions" besides a traffic signal, he said, adding that traffic lights can be inappropriate and would definitely slow traffic.
Reach Eloise Aguiar at 234-5266 or eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.
