A $5.3 million water line replacement project on Wahiawa's California Avenue that began 20 months ago is causing headaches for area residents, who have complained the road is hazardous for drivers and pedestrians.

The Board of Water Supply project along the upper section of California Avenue began in November 2005 and was originally supposed to be completed in October last year. It's now expected to be done as late as December.

The delays in the water line work have also pushed back the city's plans to rehabilitate a 2.75-mile stretch of upper California Avenue starting from North Cane Street. That project is timed to begin a year after the water line work is completed, coinciding with the end of the contractor's warranty on the trench work.

In the meantime, residents have been dealing with rough roads and torn-up sidewalks. The residential area includes Leilehua High School and 'Iliahi Elementary School.

"In general the roads in Hawai'i are terrible, and the California Avenue segment is the worst from the standpoint of driver and pedestrian safety and wreaking havoc on your car," said Wahiawa-Whitmore Village Neighborhood Board chairman Ben Acohido, who lives on California Avenue. "Even my car's shock absorbers are gone."

Acohido said the water line project has been "very, very frustrating" for residents.

Board of Water Supply manager and chief engineer Clifford Lum said rain and some project changes have delayed the work. But he said Board of Water Supply officials don't agree with the contractor, Perfecto Engineering & Construction Services, on why it's taking so long and are investigating "why it's such an extended delay." The Board of Water Supply is also looking into possible legal remedies, he said.

Perfecto Acosta, president and owner of Perfecto Engineering & Construction Services, said the California Avenue delays are justified by "unforeseen conditions and changes beyond our control," such as last year's excessive rains and project design changes.

Acosta said his company has done other projects for the Board of Water Supply with no problems. But Board of Water Supply spokeswoman Su Shin said the agency has had "some timeliness issues" with the contractor.

Board of Water Supply officials said the contractor will begin repaving the trench area by the end of this month, and that sidewalks that have been dug up will be repaired.

"The primary issue we've heard about is the road conditions on California Avenue," Lum said. "So our primary focus at this time is to get some repaving work done."

Acohido said the entire width of the road needs to be resurfaced.

The Board of Water Supply is replacing about 15,000 feet of water line along a 1.4-mile stretch of California Avenue between U'uku Street and Karsten Drive, as well as some side streets. It's part of an ongoing program to replace aging water lines around the island, Lum said.

The water line that's being replaced on California Avenue was put in during the 1960s, he said.

"The line's getting worse; we need to replace it," Lum said. There have been 22 main breaks on the line since the early 1970s, with more than 75 percent of them occurring since the early 1990s, the Board of Water Supply said.

Officials said the project will also improve water pressure for more than 100 households on the side streets.

Shin acknowledged the inconvenience the delays have caused for residents. "We are very appreciative of the patience that the community has shown, and the delays are not acceptable to us, either," she said.

State Sen. Robert Bunda, D-22nd (North Shore, Wahiawa), said he has received e-mails and calls from constituents complaining that "this project has gone on too long."

The road, which already needed to be repaved before the water line project began, has since worsened, Bunda said.

"It was driveable back then, but this project made it totally worse," he said.

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.