Speed limits on Hwy 130

[Russell]

To H.O.T.P.E. I can offer that bridge with or without the toll booths. The price is slightly higher with the toll booths, but well worth it, as you say, for the steady income stream!
Kalakoa, great idea, but too late for me!

Russell

[robguz]

kjlpahoa, from what I understand, it was also part of the CDP (or another group?), so he was not alone in his advocacy of this change. Although I disagreed with the change, it was actually pro-active on his part and not just his personal opinion, though it came across as that in the news at the time. I also understand that any citizen can ask DOT to review things and perhaps they will agree. Although there are lots of other potential confounding factors in looking at pre and post 45 data on accidents, traffic flow, average speed, etc, it would certainly make sense for DOT to look at this after they have a couple years of data, and revise speed limits accordingly if it made things clearly better or worse. Although I think DOT seems to be more interested in misleading the public about their role in molasses leaks and being negligent in deference to Matson. I'm not holding my breath that DOT will ever do such an evaluation.

My guess is it's a dead horse and is going to be 45 for the foreseeable future. In my experience, it is so slow through that area during commute hours that 45 often isn't even possible. At other times, people tended to go 50 where it used to be 55, and still go about the same speed despite the speed change. My fear was that those that used to go 35-40 in a 55 would start going 25-30. I think those people are so high that they probably don't know the speed limit anyway, so my fears haven't been realized that I've observed.

I don't think anyone opposes the 35 in the construction zone during active construction. There are times when even that fast seems a bit scary.

[reni]

"As I stated earlier, I requested the lowering of speed limit along HPP stretch to 45. DOT reviewed request and agreed."

MAHALO RUSSELL !!!!

This is the most dangerous stretch in our state............if I remember the news report concerning this stretch of our highway correctly. But what I CAN remember is a woman pulling out in Front of us from Makuu Rd. as we were traveling towards Hilo. We were only traveling 45MPH because we slow down at these intersections. She did not see us as her vision of our vehicle was blocked by a large truck turning off the highway onto Makuu. My husband made a quick veer to the left......into the oncoming traffic lane to avoid slamming right into her door. Had there been cars in the oncoming lane, he would have been forced to plow right into her. She would have been seriously injured, if not killed. Both cars spun the 3 lanes and ended up in the ditch across the road. Our car was totaled.....her car was totaled, broken glasses , sore backs and necks. So 10 miles per hour faster would have done what??? Certainly would not have made a dent in arriving at our destination faster.....

[HPPGuy]

I think the speed limit should be raised a bit but I ALWAYS drive the posted speed limit. What I don't get are the people who drive behind me, get irate, then pass me on the right and flip me off like I am some sort of scofflaw.

[ourdoc]

reni, its not the entire stretch of road, the worst parts are Paradise and Makuu intersections with Makuu being the worst, both of which the people have been asking for a signal for over a decade. Yet we still don't have any. Also go look around the country and see how many places they have someone turning right yield to someone turning left. The whole design of the Makuu intersection is bad and still is.

Many "studies" showed that the majority of accidents occurred because "THE HIGHWAY has no stoplights and limited merge lanes." It does NOT list speed as a factor.

That and the worst part is the bypass designed by an engineer who lived in KONA, and is the WORST design I have ever seen. It makes no sense to me to go from a four lane 45 mph hwy and merge into two lane, and increase the speed to 55 then back to 45. And going into Hilo, you go from 45 then back to 55 on a two lane road then back to 45 on the new 4 lane bypass, that SHOULD be 55 as most do 60 or more. They say its because the school is there, but there is no access to the school from the bypass road, and no people walking on it 99.9% of the time. Who ever set the speed limits needs to have their heads examined. Not to forget the turn right on red, changed to no turn on right on red, then back to turn right on red, they can't seem to make up their minds, which to me says they don't know what the hell they are doing.

Also, the intersection at Puainako and Kilauea used to be the most dangerous intersection in the State. It took many deaths before they finally fixed the intersection, which again the people had been asking for, for decades, and its still is screwed up as they only did a partial fix.