• Kaua‘i’s highways and airport Kaua‘i’s highways and airport Tomorrow, members of Gov. Linda Lingle’s Kaua‘i Advisory Committee are focusing their monthly meeting on the future of Kaua‘i’s state highways and Lihu‘e Airport at a meeting set for the Mo‘ikeha
• Kaua‘i’s highways and airport
Kaua‘i’s highways and airport
Tomorrow, members of Gov. Linda Lingle’s Kaua‘i Advisory Committee are focusing their monthly meeting on the future of Kaua‘i’s state highways and Lihu‘e Airport at a meeting set for the Mo‘ikeha Building at the Lihu‘e Civic Center. Brian Sekiguchi, state Department of Transportation Airports Division deputy director, and Steve Kyono, Kaua‘i district engineer with the DOT Highways Division, are to field questions at the meeting.
Along with Kaua‘i’s ports, our state highways and our inter-island, jet-capable airport at Lihu‘e are critical pieces of vital transportation and supply routes for the island. Take one of these away and the island is in trouble. Recent and upcoming improvements to our airport, including changes to the heliport that adjoins the main airport, appear to be moving along well. The main drawback in regards to time and congestion at the airport is something everyone else across the United States is facing — due to tightened security regulations since the terrorist attacks on America on Sept. 11, 2001. However, our state highways continue to be a major infrastructure problem in regards to congestion and safety. Where highways are concerned, long-term planning has lagged over the past decades, and we are woefully behind in where we should be. Kuhio Highway, running north from Lihu‘e to Ha‘ena, and Kaumuali‘i Highway, running south from Lihu‘e to Polihale, make up what used to be called Kaua‘i’s “Belt Road.” In places, they actually run the route of ancient Hawaiian trails, and remain at two lanes in many areas. Ongoing meetings held by DOT leaders and representatives of other organizations have led to ideas on how to improve highways, and suggestions for where to perhaps build alternative roads that would lessen the congestion on our main state roads. The problem is the lengthy timeline for implementing major improvements. Often, decades rather than years are given as time frames. Ideally, a new road would run from Princeville to the Koloa area well mauka of the coast, alleviating the congestion now found on and off during most days along the coast. Road sections heading out of Lihu‘e both north and south, and the corridor from the north end of Kapa‘a town to Wailua, are where the main problems occur.
Local residents concerned about highway congestion and safety are encouraged to attend this meeting to add human faces to this ongoing problem. Parts of this problem are being addressed, and hopefully the small solutions will grow into a big solution. Taking care of big problems can be easily done by breaking problems down into smaller pieces, said Henry Ford, the man most responsible for our reliance on automobiles today. Ford’s wisdom is applicable to our own problem with automobiles, and shows something can be done to take more steps toward solving our road problems.
