For years, Kailua residents have tried to get something done about Kapa'a Quarry Road — its bad lighting, blind spots and notorious dip.

They've complained about it at the neighborhood board, raised it with their legislators and talked to the city. But little has been done.

"It's something we struggle with," board chairwoman Kathy Bryant-Hunter said, adding that perhaps a fatal accident on the roadway late Thursday will be the catalyst for change. "Maybe this will be the straw that gets everybody together to solve the problems and improve the road."

In addition to the two women killed Thursday, at least three other motorists have died on the narrow, tree-lined roadway in the past 12 years.

And with every year, the roadway gets busier, with morning and afternoon traffic to Le Jardin Academy, trucks headed to the Ameron quarry and Kapa'a Transfer Station and people headed to businesses along the stretch. "There's so much activity now along that road," Bryant-Hunter said.

Residents and lawmakers say the roadway is one of several notoriously dangerous thoroughfares on O'ahu that have been the site of fatal crashes.

In most cases, the roads were built for rural, slow traffic and are now accommodating commuters, tourists and thrillseekers at all hours.

O'AHU'S DANGER SPOTS

On the North Shore, there is Kaukonahua Road. In Hau'ula, residents want safety improvements on their winding, narrow stretch of Kamehameha Highway.

Hihimanu Road in Waimanalo, with its series of dips, has long been a headache for drivers. Farrington Highway in Wai'anae is also a concern, along with Kunia Road, where eight have died in two years.

"A lot of accidents happen there," state Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu said of Kunia Road.

The lawmaker, whose district includes the roadway, said improvements were made to the road as developments moved in.

But much of the roadway is narrow and badly lit.

Still, Karamatsu said, some drivers make a bad situation worse: Speeding is a big problem on Kunia Road and many overtake other cars illegally.

Ken Furukawa, former president of the Hau'ula Community Association, said residents have tried to persuade the state for more than a decade to improve their winding, narrow stretch of Kamehameha Highway.

"I live here and I hear the sirens all the time," said Furukawa, a 16-year resident of the community. "I always think, 'I hope it's nobody I know.' "

But Scott Ishikawa, spokesman for the state Transportation Department, said improvements aren't as easy as they sound. A suggestion to widen Kamehameha Highway to four lanes was shot down by residents.

There is only so much that can be done with the existing road, he said.

Ishikawa also said the state has tried, even with its limited resources, to address dangerous roads in recent years. For example, the state put up barriers on Farrington Highway in Ma'ili to prevent more collisions.

He added that drivers should never be speeding on roads with poor lighting, narrow lanes or other potential safety hazards.

'MOST UNSAFE ROAD'

Residents in Kailua say part of the danger with Kapa'a Quarry Road is those unfamiliar with the roadway may not know its dangers.

"This is by far the most unsafe road in the entire district, from lighting perspectives as well as the dips and turns," said state Rep. Cynthia Thielen, adding she is in favor of shutting down the road from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

"You have a mixture of huge trucks and vehicles, and then when you couple it with the inadequate lighting and use of that road from 10 o'clock onward, you're just asking for trouble," said Thielen, who represents Kailua and Kane'ohe Bay.

The majority of the road is owned by the city.

City spokesman Bill Brennan could not comment last night on any improvements that have been made to the road in recent years, but Bryant-Hunter said the city has installed guard rails in certain sections.

Part of the difficulty in making large-scale improvements is that in addition to the city, private landowners own small portions of the road.

The road also butts up against Kawai Nui Marsh, which falls under federal preservation rules and any street lights installed would have to be "passive," so as not to disturb native birds in the marsh.

SPEEDING KEY PROBLEM

"This is a dangerous road," said Lionell Garcia, who drives on Kapa'a Quarry Road regularly as the senior groundskeeper for the city Department of Parks and Recreation. "You come too fast, you don't have control."

Andy Ruiz, who flies model helicopters at the airplane field, said he believes people are going 40 mph on average in the 25 mph zone. The road isn't dangerous, Ruiz said, it is speeders that cause the problem.

"Especially that hill where the accident happened. The drivers just let it go and — I did it myself — you can easily hit 50 mph," Ruiz said. "Then you have that bend and you don't see what's coming up. That will do it."

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com and Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.