Speed traps on Hwy 130

[Rob Tucker]

I had an interesting conversation with the State DOT head of engineering regarding their proposals for Puna. He indicated that he had no interest in roundabouts and had the power to decline them. The interesting part is, when I described the DOT plans a "more cars moving faster" he agreed and offered the expert opinion that the billions spent in highway development for Oahu were in fact a failure. No matter how much money they spent on capacity (more cars moving faster) they ended up with too many cars moving slowly.

So now Honolulu is looking at light rail at $200 million a mile.

The PCDP transportation proposals are more concerned with safety than capacity and would like to see a large portion of the available funds go to alternative routes and improved connectivity. A big problem with Hwy. 130 is that it is the ONLY route. So of course it is crowded and will be as long as it is the lone roadway. If there was another route in, and out of, Puna the need to widen Hwy. 130 might be reduced. Another route is needed for emergency purposes as well.

Also, the local battle cry of "Keep Puna Rural" could be interpreted as concentrating on road safety rather than speed. I have heard people say they would like a high speed freeway into Puna but I do suggest we may well be at the waining days of the big V8 gas guzzlers and it is practical to not repeat Honolulu's road building history here in Puna.

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