2009-02-AU Limited Scope Performance Audit of the Highway Fund

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Chapter 4: CHALLENGES FACING THE DEPARTMENT OF PULIC WORKS FINDING: Coordination between the State and County on the installation of traffic safety improvements at locations identified in the Hawaii Five Percent State /County Report seems to be lacking, and a more focused approach and working relationship between the State and County may help speed need to expedite the implementation of suggested remedies and reduce the number of planning) crashes. Specifically, remedies for known road safety issues at intersections of State highways and County roads have often taken coordination/ many years to complete or have yet to be addressed. For its part, the County should develop a formal process for lobbying, coordinating, and implementation reporting on the status of State /County intersection improvements, and expedite required permits, facilitate the acquisition of land, or assist in of traffic safety the installation of low -cost safety measures as well as major improvements at improvements. State /County The intersection at State Highway 130 and County -owned Kahakai Boulevard has been listed in the Hawaii Five Percent Report in 2006, intersections. 2007, and 2008, without completion of the proposed traffic signal installation. This delayed resolution of known safety issues has resulted in the HDOT reporting on the same locations in successive annual Hawaii Five Percent Reports, without focusing public awareness and government resources on other locations that may require safety improvements. Based on HDOT data for 2004 -2006, the highest number of crashes on State Highway 130 occurred at the intersection of County -owned Ainaloa Boulevard, with 37 major crashes reported in the three -year period. The Ainaloa Boulevard intersection was not listed in the State's 2006 Hawaii Five Percent Report due to the State using older traffic accident data, but it was listed in the Hawaii Five Percent Report for 2007, and again in 2008. The proposed remedy of installing a traffic signal at Ainaloa Boulevard has not yet been completed. The number of crashes at County road intersections with State Highway 130 highlights the need for the County Administration to work in tandem with the State to assess factors contributing to crashes at State /County intersections and implement timely and appropriate traffic safety solutions. FINDING: The HDOT also compiles and reports on the major traffic crashes reported by the Hawaii County Police Department. Currently, the State /County Police Department does not have a unique identifier or GPS coordinates and may list an intersection differently in crash reports, agencies need to which prevents a State analyst from readily sorting crash data. This standardize has resulted in a delay of over a year for HDOT to compile its crash reports. Since the data is old and only includes major crashes and not reporting of all crashes, the Traffic Division Chief reports that its usefulness in identifying road condition - related crashes at County intersections is traffic data to limited. facilitate traffic The following table prepared by HDOT lists all State intersections safety planning. (including State /County intersections) with three or more major crashes per year within the last three -year time period (2004 to 2006). 16