Wailua woman sees way to beat the traffic Six months ago, Sandy Brewer of Wailua was driving with her son on Kuhio Highway to Lihu’e when she got stuck in traffic. Instead of getting mad, Brewer began formulating a plan
Wailua woman sees way to beat the traffic
Six months ago, Sandy Brewer of Wailua was driving with her son on Kuhio Highway to Lihu’e when she got stuck in traffic.
Instead of getting mad, Brewer began formulating a plan she says could result in fewer cars on the road and fewer traffic jams, as long as there is community support of carpooling.
“Cars with only a single occupant are heading in all directions. We are all in the same boat,” said Brewer, a Wilcox Memorial Hospital medical laboratory technologist and a Web site designer. “It seems to me that carpooling can work here. It is done everywhere else.”
Informal carpooling takes place on Kaua’i now. But her carpooling plan, if implemented, would be the first coordinated one of its kind on the island in many years, Brewer said.
Her plan would result in “less wear and tear on vehicles, on the roads, money saved and making a new friend,” Brewer said.
The state Department of Transportation and Kaua’i County are forging ahead with the construction of new roads or reconstruction of existing roads to promote efficient traffic flow. While that will be beneficial, Brewer says, other proposals to support the work are “years away and they are expensive.”
For the rideshare program, Kauaians can supply information on their carpooling requirements that can be matched with other people, Brewer said.
People interested in the program can provide their ride information on www.kauairideshare.org or send the information to Kaua’i Rideshare at 4617 Kuamo’o Road, Kapa’a, HI 96746.
The success of the proposal is a numbers game, Brewer said.
“If more people sign up, there will be a better matchup of people going to work together,” she said.
She said she is looking for support from businesses and other individuals who can help coordinate the project.
“If I can get a lot of people to sign up, I would like to find people in each area (of the island) to help coordinate the project,” she said.
She said she hopes employers will post sign-up sheets at work sites or encourage their employees to join the project.
The project also could help support the Kaua’i County bus system, Brewer said.
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 226) and mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net
