Underpass; Roundabouts; Crosswalks; Bikepaths; Sidewalks; Bikelanes; Mass Transportation and More
5/29/2018 #kihei
The 1998 Kihei Makena Community Plan has countless references to “alternative” transportation, but for the most part during the twenty years that have lapsed, ten more than the expected term of the plan, little has been accomplished in South Maui. (BTW, should the next version of our plan be called the South Maui Community Plan?)
So when we announced the traffic control signal at the intersection which some day will be the major entrance to the future DOE high school, a lot of conversations began; pros and cons of it and related transportation concerns. Most everyone agreed that if construction is really about to begin in the next few months with lots of heavy equipment accessing the site at an already challenging intersection, safety demands vehicle traffic controls. But what about long term planning?
We attended meetings on the study on possible transportation plans financed by the state back in 2013 (SEE: https://gokihei.org/environment/transportation-plans-for-south-maui).
So what happened afterwords? Very difficult to determine, but indications are DOE did not like what they heard so just buried it. Looking at the advantages of a roundabout vs perpendicular signalized intersection – ignored.
A few points to consider:
You can’t put a roundabout on a “highway”, right?
YES YOU CAN: it is done all the time throughout much of the world, including at Puhoa on Hawaii Island.
Traffic lights slow traffic – NO, they “stop & go” traffic.
Roundabouts truly slow traffic, it flows more slowly.
Parents have to drive their kids to and from school for safety.
NO; offering safe ways for everyone to walk or cycle is better for all.
Everyone walking to school from makai needs a signalized crosswalk across the 4 lane highway.
NO: Better an underpass so they never have contact with motor vehicles.
WE NEED A PLAN IN PLACE! Our community has been waiting decades for this school to open, and we have years before it will. The time is NOW to get a transportation plan in place so it is done in a reasonable and most efficient manner.
Is this safe for pedestrians/ bicyclists?
Is anyone listening to these experts??
Good plan if implemented
Discover more from Kihei Community Association | Maui, Hawaii
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Aloha
Hmm, an underpass?
How many underpasses exist in the Blue Rock State? Were underpasses viable here, why not an Oahu subway instead of the dreaded rail system?
D.C.’s Metro was constructed through former swampland–and it ain’t finished yet after over 40 years. Digging/blasting an underpass for the high school might take that long as well.
Anyway, the first KCA meeting we attended in summer 2005 featured a DOE Oahu expert’s South Maui High School presentation. Some young folks had pre-school youngsters there. Those youngsters may become grandparents before the initial high school class graduates. (Incidentally, my high school graduating class was the its first and we celebrate our 60th (!!??) reunion this fall, for whatever this means.)
Malama pono
mjd
Mahalo for entering the conversation, MJ. You have to open up the thought process on how to achieve an underpass, by using what nature has offered to us in the Aloha State. Why try to dig through blue rock to go under the highway, when openings already exist. keiki already go under the highway using the existing gulches. Progressive planners look to place walkways along the upper edges of the gulches in close proximity to the school site. Forget the dark, dank smelly damp subway underpasses of back east mainland cities. No digging; no blasting- just smart planning & thinking can achieve this.
Also is DOE expert an oxymoron? Alohahaha