questions on Keaau to Shower Highway 130 project

[birdmove]

I guess I had originally thought that the project would include 4 lanes (2 each way), plus wide shoulders on both sides. A neighbor mentioned to me the other day that, it will have the 4 lanes, and that the outer 2 will be open as lanes during certain hours, and act as shoulders at other times, as the outer lane/shoulder does now from Shower heading towards Hilo. I had thought we'd have 4 full time lanes plus shoulders. Anyone know if our neighbor is correct?

Thanks for any comments.



Jon in Keaau/HPP

[kalakoa]

I believe it's three fulltime lanes + 2 part-time shoulders, and will be barely adequate when completed, so we can all look forward to more "shoulder lane conversion".

[Kenney]

I just wish they'd finish it, even if they have to work weekends, so it's open before lava further complicates the drive!

[jerry]

I believe it is two lanes Hilo bound and one lane Pahoa bound, except in the afternoon when the mauka shoulder will be used as a second lane Pahoa bound.

The real faux pas is that all this construction is only going to move the merge from Keaau to Shower. The same backup will exist, just in a different location.
Out of site, out of mind?

Jerry

[birdmove]

Thanks everyone. Yeah, Jerry, I know what you mean. There are a lot of folks living in HPP that will probably turn off on Shower, rather than go through more of a crunch by staying on the highway any farther. Hopefully, that will help.

Jon in Keaau/HPP

[reni]

"There are a lot of folks living in HPP that will probably turn off on Shower, rather than go through more of a crunch by staying on the highway any farther. Hopefully, that will help."
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Shower turn off is my preferred route home now.
Is the turn off lane to Shower going to be lengthened as turning off at Shower will be limited to all that can fit into the turn off lane.
Might get a little gnarly with the Pahoa bound lane merge into one and those trying to get into the turn off lane at the same juncture.

[birdmove]

Good point, reni. I also turn off at Shower when coming home from Hilo or Keaau. I don't know the answer, but maybe someone else does here.

Jon in Keaau/HPP

[Frank]

a little out of the box...

a. Traffic into Keaau from Pahoa to use the traffic light Hilo side of the high school instead of the light on the Pahoa side to get into Keaau. NO Left turn onto 130 from this light.

b. Traffic Hilo bound from Keaau schools to use traffic light on the Hilo side of the high school instead of the light on the Pahoa side to make Left turn onto 130.

These 2 changes in access to Keaau from Pahoa or Hilo from the schools would equate to removing the stop light from the Pahoa side of the high school.

Pahoa traffic from Keaau would merge into 130 traffic headed south much in the same fashion as the merge from Kilauea Ave. into 11 headed south.

This will extend the length of 2 lane traffic headed South by about a mile with NO stop light to deal with. Doesn't seem like much but I'm of the opinion, with one less Stop at the Pahoa side light and an extra mile to spread out (faster drivers remain in the left hand lane...slower to the right allowing the merge from Keaau traffic to the south) may ease the anticipated congestion/bottleneck at Shower.

Thoughts?

[kalakoa]

ease the anticipated congestion/bottleneck at Shower

Rumor has it the merge will be 500' before Shower because DOT couldn't get that piece of land?

[Aaron S]

The Shower/Highway 130 intersection will also be signalized when phase 2 of this project is completed, as far as I understand.

The plan is to widen Highway 130 to Pahoa, but it will take several years (and several phases) to complete this project. There is only a finite amount of Federal Highway dollars available every fiscal year cycle. This among the reasons why it will take so long.