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(update) Kipapa Gulch safety improvements to move forward!

Update 12/3/18

Kamehameha Hwy safety improvements taking shape

The Kamehameha Hwy safety improvements through Kipapa Gulch are quickly becoming a reality – Hawaii DOT is the mostly finished with the safety changes (striping and signage changes). The improvements involve restriping the highway to provide 4-6.5-foot shoulders and a safety median. Combined the safety improvements will make the highway dramatically safer for people that bike, walk, and drive. See the great photo below from Joseph Bradley showing the changes.

Photo and graphic credit – Joseph Bradley

Update 10/23/18

Support Needed 10/24 7:30pm

We’re almost there! Hawaii DOT plans to implement (see below 6/15/18 update). But the Mililani Neighborhood Board has a resolution to ask them to STOP. Please come (again!) this Wednesday 10/24 7:30pm at Mililani Waena Elementary (95-502 Kipapa Dr) to support. 
The 35+ people we brought out to each of the previous meetings had a giant impact in making it clear to the Neighborhood Board and HDOT that many in the community support this. Please come out again so we can remind the NB of all the support and convince them to stop this negative resolution. 

Mililani/Waipio Neighborhood Board

Wednesday, October 24 7:30pm

@ Mililani Waena Elementary, 95-502 Kipapa Dr


Update 6/15/18

Kamehama Hwy Safety Improvements Approved!

On June 14th, HDOT announced that they are moving forward with safety improvements to Kamehameha Highway! The safety improvements will create consistent minimum 4ft width shoulders and a safety median on Kamehameha Hwy between the Roosevelt Bridge and Lanikuhana Avenue. As part of the planning, HDOT conducted a coned traffic study to study any possible traffic impacts from the safety improvements. The results showed no to minimal impact on traffic flow. HDOT also conducted an analysis of traffic crashes and injuries that showed that head-on collisions are a major issue on Kamehameha Hwy between the Roosevelt Bridge and Lanikuhana Avenue and that the safety improvements would directly address this issue.

Click here to read a Star Advertiser article on the HDOT Kamehameha Hwy safety improvements project. 

Click here to view HDOT’s presentation to the Mililani Neighborhood Boar March 28th.

Thank you to over 50 people that came out the Mililani Neighborhood Board to speak in support of the safety improvements – the strong showing demonstrated the need and community support for these crucial safety improvements through Kipapa Gulch.


Stay Involved

While it’s the Kamehameha Hwy safety improvements aren’t on the agenda, they will undoubtedly be discussed at the next Mililani Neighborhood Board 6/27 7:30pm. Please come to out to make sure we have supportive voices present in the conversation. If you can make it, please contact Daniel@hbl.org.


Making a Safer Kamehameha Hwy!

Summary: The Hawaii Department of Transportation is planning to create continuous minimum 4 foot shoulders and a safety median on Kamehameha Hwy through Kipapa Gulch. This would create a safer bike connection between Mililani and Waipio and make the highway dramatically safer for everyone (read more below).

More details on the proposal: 

  • HDOT is proposing safety improvements to Kamehameha Hwy between Ka Uka Blvd and Lanikuhana St. These include:
    • create continuous minimum 4 foot shoulders, wider where possible
    • create a 6-foot median up the Mililani side of the gulch to improve driver safety
    • maintain a 6-foot median up the Waipio side of the gulch for driver safety
  • The change will be implemented through re-striping the highway, so it’ll be relatively inexpensive and fast.
  • On the Waipio side, the proposal is to adjust the median to provide the shoulders, while maintaining a 6 foot median for driver safety.
  • On the Mililani side, the proposal is to eliminate the “climbing lane” for 0.9 miles.

*HDOT is currently upgrading the Roosevelt Bridge (at the bottom of Kipapa Gulch) and will be installing 6 foot shoulders. This bridge work is the impetus for HDOT considering options to have shoulders continuously linking Mililani to Waipio. 

How will this address safety for all road users: This is a safety improvement project that will make this section of Kamehameha Highway safer for everyone – those walking, biking, and driving.

  • Shoulders will dramatically improve safety for those biking and walking.
  • Shoulders will also improve safety for those driving – among the safety benefits for drivers is that shoulders provide “recovery area” if a driver exits the lane they have space to safely recover.
  • The 6-foot median will improve safety for drivers (HDOT has said that safety records show that the Waipio side of the gulch which has a median has a better safety record than the Mililani side which doesn’t have a median).

How will this impact traffic: HDOT’s coned traffic study mimicked removal of the “climbing lane” over the week of April 2nd. HDOT’s analysis of the coned traffic study determined there was no to minimal impact on traffic flow. In addition to not negatively impacting traffic flow, there should be a safety benefit for everyone on the highway by reducing speeding motorists.

Safety First: Kamehameha Hwy is the only biking and walking option to get between Mililani and Waipio, so making it safe for those walking and biking must be the first priority. The improvements will also make the highway significantly safer for those driving.


Supporters at the January Mililani meeting.

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Comments

  1. Dave says

    June 15, 2018 at 5:23 pm

    I got an earful from an impatient motorist heading back towards town.. With the limited space, you have no choice but to take the lane. You might p-off some drivers as a result… I have never felt safe riding on that part of the island.

  2. Yao Jielun says

    August 14, 2018 at 11:57 pm

    I only just read about this, kind of sad I never knew about the meeting or I would’ve come to speak against making it a single lane going into Mililani. I remember the road being coned back then, and while there was indeed not much traffic, we should not forget it was vacation time, when traffic was already slow. As for biking/walking. I drive that road numerous times a day, and the amount of bicycles/walkers is really negligible compared to the inconvenience a single lane is going to bring during traffic hours. I’m a bicyclist myself, but this I definitely do not see as an improvement.

    • Jeff says

      October 19, 2020 at 4:20 pm

      Sadly a truck crashed just a few days after this posting while speeding and weaving up Kam Hwy.

      https://youtu.be/J6y_OZGTWBA

      The 2 climbing lanes encourage speeding and passing with no margin for error.

      It’s much better to keep it to a single lane with a buffered median to encourage drivers to take their time and be safe. It’s already 1 lane each way on the other side of the bridge near Waipio.

      It’s also infinitely safer to bicycle up and down with the 5 foot shoulders. I would not cycle that stretch of roadway the way it was striped before with cars going 50.

  3. Meshkat Sharif says

    August 29, 2018 at 6:20 am

    great post

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