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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, February 16, 2005

Pali contraflow proposed

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer

A bill calling for a contraflow lane study for Pali Highway is advancing in the Legislature, resurrecting a controversial issue that has been supported by Windward commuters but strongly opposed by Honolulu residents.

The House Transportation Committee on Monday voted 11-0 to pass HB 1472 out of committee. The measure goes to the Finance Committee next.

"I think there's general support of the concept," said Rep. Pono Chong, D-49th (Maunawili, Enchanted Lake, Kane'ohe), who introduced the bill.

"The question is what is it going to look like. That's why we want to keep this moving forward. My goal is to have something up and running by fall of next year," he said.

The bill would have the state Department of Transportation study contraflow options on Pali Highway during peak traffic hours to determine the feasibility of a permanent contraflow lane.

State Transportation Director Rod Haraga said he supports the intent of the bill. But he said several issues must be addressed, including the ability to make left turns, the steep grades in the road, ensuring safety in the tunnels and the hairpin turn on the Windward side of the tunnels.

"If I saw it as a completely safe project, I would do it in a heartbeat," Haraga told transportation committee members Monday.

Haraga said contraflow might work for segments of the highway but not in the tunnels, where only traffic cones would separate oncoming traffic on a steep road. Even when the state has used contraflow on Pali Highway, it always had a police officer standing by and that could make for an expensive project, he said.

He estimated that contraflow would cost about $1 million for each two miles of road. Safety barriers like those in the Zipper lane on H-1 would be used to ensure safety, but there is no place to store them, he said.

Some Windward and Nu'uanu residents expressed doubts about contraflow.

"I think the contraflow would really help the Windward side," said Audrey Hidano, with the Nu'uanu/Punchbowl Neighborhood Board. "But my question, and it's a deadly question, is what would be the speed limit once they hit our residential area and who will police it for us?"

Roy Yanagihara, chairman of the Kane'ohe Neighborhood Board, said that while contraflow may help, the bottleneck would still be where Pali Highway nears downtown.

"The contraflow will speed us to the Nu'uanu area, then what?" he said. "We'll get stuck there. It's a waste of money to do another study. This contraflow will not solve the problem beginning at Waokanaka Street to downtown Honolulu."

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.