After more than a week of increased traffic congestion along one of Puna’s main arteries because of the construction of a new roundabout, local elected officials are searching for ways to improve driving conditions during the project timeline.
After more than a week of increased traffic congestion along one of Puna’s main arteries because of the construction of a new roundabout, local elected officials are searching for ways to improve driving conditions during the project timeline.
A detour went into effect Dec. 2 as construction crews work on the roundabout itself, which will be at the intersection of Highway 130 and Pahoa Village Road in Pahoa when complete.
The detour sends drivers to a temporary traffic signal at the intersection of Highway 130 and Kahakai Boulevard.
Just before 2 p.m. — when school lets out — Tuesday, more than 45 cars were backed up in the northbound direction of the light, while the southbound lane was relatively clear with a wait time of a minute and a half.
The entrance to Pahoa Marketplace also was congested as a line of drivers waited to turn onto Pahoa Village Road from the shopping plaza. Northbound cars heading into the market were dependent on gaps in traffic or a friendly hand waving them across.
School arrival and dismissal times have been especially problematic for the area, as have typical peak traffic hours in the morning and afternoon when commuters drive to and from Hilo.
About the time of school dismissal Tuesday, an ambulance passed through the light, with cars pulling over to accommodate the vehicle. The Hawaii Fire Department, which handles emergency medical services, could not immediately be reached for comment regarding response times during peak rush hour.
A manager at Pahoa Feed who asked not to be identified said he tries to travel during off-peak hours. It helps, he said, that he lives in Hawaiian Paradise Park and tends to travel in the opposite direction of the congestion.
“It’s lined up all the way (back) to Makuu at 5:30,” he said. Makuu Drive is just less than 3.5 miles from the intersection of Highway 130 and Kahakai.
“The reason I think this situation deserves a little bit of sympathy is people in south Puna … they’re in two other traffic jams on the way to Hilo,” state Sen. Russell Ruderman (D- Puna) said. “It’s a pileup on top of what they’ve already got.”
Ruderman said that last week he heard reports of backups lasting a half-hour to an hour during rush hour.
The temporary light is not a timed light and is intended to be traffic sensitive. Ruderman said he spoke with a highway engineer this week about the light, and that originally the signal “was not acting as smart as it should be.” The engineer told him the problem was fixed, he said.
County Councilman Greggor Ilagan, one of Puna’s two council representatives, said Wednesday that he had heard from about 10 people since the detour opened.
“They would like to see that resolved because it does take time from their day,” Ilagan said. “We understand it’s going to be tough for them regarding this construction.” His office was working to notify more people of the project’s expected timeline: the roundabout is set to open in six months, with all construction complete in nine months.
The roundabout is intended to be a solution to the high incidence of traffic accidents at the intersection, which was found to be one of the most dangerous in the state according to a state Department of Transportation study that looked at accidents between 2004 and 2007.
Work on the state-funded $4.8 million project was postponed after the June 27 lava flow last year.
Some residents have been advocating for officials to open up Railroad Avenue to traffic. The two-lane county road is not paved, but was extended last year as an emergency route when the lava began advancing on Pahoa.
During a July community meeting when DOT officials met with Pahoa residents to discuss the entire roundabout project, Hawaii district engineer Sal Panem said that because the road was constructed as an escape route there were no plans to open it during the detour.
Ruderman said he and other officials reached out to the Mayor’s Office this week about opening Railroad as a one-way road during peak morning and afternoon hours.
Ilagan’s office has been passing similar comments — the first was received in July, well before construction actually began — on to the mayor, as has the office of fellow Puna Councilman Danny Paleka.
In the meantime, people in Pahoa continue to voice their concerns.
“I heard about (the traffic) right away, and I’ve experienced it, too,” Ruderman said. “There’s an unnecessary amount of delays.”
Email Ivy Ashe at iashe@hawaiitribune-herald.com.