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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0243.001 1998-2000 PUAINAKO STREET EXTENSION AND WIDENING PROJECT PROJECT DESCRIPTION, PURPOSE AND NEED The Project would widen to four lanes and partially realign Puainako Street (State Hwy. 2000) between Kilauea Avenue and Komohana Street. Sidewalks and bicycle lanes would bb built on both sides of the street. Puainako Street would be extended ad a two~lane road with paved shoulders for d.5 miles between Komohana Street and Saddle Road (State Hwy. 200) neat' Country Club Drive. The Project's purposes are to Improve arterial traffic flow of the Stara Highway system by providing a direct link between the existing Puainako Street and the Saddle Road, and to alleviate congested and unsafe traffic conditions on Puainako Street and Kaumana Drive. The Project has been a part of the Hawaii County General Plan since 1967. Currently, insufficient lanes and unsatisfactory alignments produce severe traffic congestion at peak hours and higher than normal accident rates on Puainako Street and Kaumana Drive. Traffic engineers calculate a substantial worsening of these conditions if improvements such as the proposed Project are not made. The Federal Highways Administration (FHWA) and the Hawaii State Department of Transportation are serving as joint lead agencies to prepaze an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in compliance with federal and State requirements, with the assistance of the Hawaii County Department of Public Works. The accepting authorities for the EIS are the Hawaii Division Administrator of FHWA and the Governor of Hawaii. 1 p,~~yEp ALTERNATIVE5 UNDER CONSIDERATION 1 ~ By"-•~-~~~~~ Alternative 1• The No-Build Alternative. The No-Build Alternative assumes very limited improvements to Puainako Street, including widening shoulders and consideration of traffic signals at Komohana Street and the Waiakea School Complex. Alternative 2: The Build Alternatives. (See map) The project corridor consists of a Lower Portion, along Puainako Street between Kilauea Avenue and Komohana Street; and an Upper Portion, between Komohana Street and Kaumana Drive near the Country Club Drive Intersection. Each portion contains a set of two alternative alignments for pazt of the route. The Lower Portion has Alignments A and B, and the Upper Portion has Alignments 1 and 2. Four distinct combinations of these alignments are possible. COST AND SCHEDULE The Project would cost an estimated $62.650 to $67.234 million, depending on the combination of alignments chosen. This total includes right-of-way acquisition, engineering and construction. If approvals are obtained in a timely manner, Project design is proposed to begin in 1999. Construction would begin in 1999 and would be finished in the year 2001. AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT AND IMPACTS In its lower end the project azea has residential uses intermixed with schools, churches and businesses. The mauka areas contain vacant land with some natural vegetation (especially on the 1881 lava flow) and also low-density residential and agricultural uses. A number of intermittent streams drain the gentle slopes. No threatened or endangered plant species aze present, but the endangered hawk and bat can be found, as they aze throughout the island. The environmental effects would be mostly beneficial (better air quality, decreased traffic congestion, less energy consumption, and safer roadways for motorists, pedestrians, and bicycles) but partially adverse (relocation of at least five households; construction impacts; and loss of native vegetation, a s!r:all area of wetlands, and some archaeological features related to the sugar plantations). Some impacts, such as changes in noise levels, are mixed. Adverse impacts will be avoided or reduces through mitigation measures. 77iis material prepared under supervision ojfhe Hawaii County Department ojPublic Works -January 1999. Comm. Na 2 y 3.00 / File Na F~ Ref. To: has~nfed PG Ref. Date Z - 2 " 9 y uusu smrcr N tAVN1l PLACE 8N11U8 VNL PAYA{A EI~EEf NFNNAAM SAEEI NOKA flllE[T MMXA1tG EIIQT % W m~ E g ewLaaw Et ~ o ~ ~ c ~ / Pam ~ ~ ~ \ s wAMwA n N ~ wwAL.w n R KOMOHAN ~ rL.w EET o o ~i 1 o o ~ ~ - ~ ~ _ - \,1 ~ Z _ - \ W ~ 2 / - / ~ ~ 7-- 6y~~ 66 '~OL ~ ~ j ~ ~ ~ ~asus onow ~ ~ / A ~ j ~T rnur - 1 - \ ~ ~ p 0• A i ~ ~ r ® ~ - _ Y ~ 1