HomeMy WebLinkAboutCommunication Number 2019-10 Waikoloa Intersection Subcommittee ReportCommunication 2019-10
Waikoloa Subcommittee Report
to the
South Kohala Community Development Plan Action Committee
June 18, 2019
REPORT OVERVIEW
At the April 2018 meeting of the South Kohala Community Development Action Committee
(SCKCP-AC), issues with traffic at the Waikoloa Road/Paniolo Avenue Intersection were raised
both in public testimony and as an AC agenda item.
In the public testimony, David Tarnas updated the Action Committee with information from the
March 13, 2018 South Kohala Traffic Safety Committee meeting. Hawaii State DOT officials
had announced that new weight limits were pending on the Waiaka Bridge. In response to the
restriction, the Kawaihae trucking community reported they would have to drive through
Waikoloa as a bypass route to and from the Harbor, significantly increasing traffic congestion in
Waikoloa and slowing down traffic flow. Councilman Richards was present and had a new
update that DOT would be modifying those limits, avoid immediate increases in truck traffic
through Waikoloa.
Although the imminent problem was averted, the AC's further discussion made it clear that the
traffic flow in Waikoloa remained an issue that needed further investigation.
AC members agreed to establish a Waikoloa Subcommittee. The Subcommittee was tasked to
investigate and report back to the Action Committee on the reported issues with the intersection
at Waikoloa Road and Paniolo Drive as well as the on-going concern with a single access road
into and out of Waikoloa Village with ever-increasing traffic and especially in emergency
situations. AC members Kevin McLaughlin, Julia Alos, and Ruth Smith volunteered to serve on
the Waikoloa Subcommittee. These volunteers have been working regularly on this issue for
over a year.
The report is structured so that information on either issue is a free-standing document. Thus,
information on population, growth, housing, and developments is found in both subsections so
each document is comprehensive and can be read independently.
Thank you for your interest in these issues and for your willingness to become informed. We
welcome your help for the benefit of residents, visitors, and local commerce to remedy the
infrastructure deficits affecting Waikoloa Village and South Kohala.
Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
South Kohala Community Development Plan (SKCDP) Action Committee
Waikoloa Subcommittee Report:
Paniolo Avenue-Waikoloa Road Intersection
Waikoloa Road - Paniolo Avenue intersection as it is in 2019. Image from Apple Maps. Labels
added.
Preface: June 2019 Update
As this report was being prepared by the Waikoloa Subcommittee, Council Member Tim
Richards moved ahead with a CIP proposal at a special meeting of the County Council on June 5,
2019. The amendment was Communication 118.11 for Bill 31, the 2019-2020 budget bill, and
specified, "... to add the Waikoloa Road/Paniolo Avenue/Pua Melia Street Intersection
Improvement project in the amount of 4.5 million to the Department of Public Works." The
amendment was passed unanimously by the Council and Bill 31 was "AMENDED TO DRAFT 4
AND PASSED 2ND AND FINAL READING."
As of this report date (June 18), the County budget process is not yet complete and the final
budget has not been approved by the Mayor, but the addition of this CIP is an important and
meaningful step forward towards addressing issues with this intersection.
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Communication No. 2019-10
Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
The subcommittee recommends supporting the CIP with communications to the Department of
Public Works, the Traffic and Engineering Divisions within the Department of Public Works,
and the Mayor. If the SKCDP Action Committee can assist with public input or other activities
with the scope of the Action Committee, the subcommittee recommends providing that
assistance.
1. Executive Summary
Based on community feedback and observations, the intersection of Waikoloa Road, Paniolo
Avenue, and Pua Melia Street at Waikoloa Village in South Kohala has become increasingly
dangerous and is in need of safety improvements. The intersection is also steadily becoming
busier and certain routes, such as left turns from Paniolo Avenue onto Waikoloa Road during
morning commute hours, appear to be below the acceptable level of service for this type of
intersection. Furthermore, the Waikoloa Village area is growing quickly, including new
affordable housing development and new shopping center development, and any problems with
the intersection are likely to become worse in the near future.
Options for developing improvements to the intersection have been considered in the past and
developer obligations were added on some rezoning and subdivision approvals decades ago, but
these have not resulted in producing the needed safety and capacity improvements. In fact, it
appears that this path will not succeed, as there are no signs of progress from any of the
developers, and it is time for the County to take action regarding the intersection.
The South Kohala Community Development Plan (SKCDP) includes multiple Policies and
Strategies relating to improving safety and circulation of the South Kohala and Waikoloa Village
roadways, and also references the 2005 Hawaii County General Plan which specifically lists
providing traffic signals to the Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue intersection as one of the
"Courses of Action" for South Kohala.
The intersection could be improved in various ways, but this subcommittee suggests having the
intersection studied by traffic professionals to recommend the necessary and best improvements
and then proceeding on those recommendations.
The improvements could be funded by the County through a project initiated with the CIP
process or through a project initiated at the Department of Public Works. In either case, the
subcommittee recommends requesting the Traffic Division at DPW to perform a traffic count
and analysis to begin the process.
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2. Introduction
The large majority of Waikoloa Village ("Village") is connected to the rest of Hawaii island by a
single road, Paniolo Avenue. Paniolo Avenue intersects with Waikoloa Road about 6 miles
mauka of the Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway and about 7 miles makai of the Mamalahoa
Highway. Paniolo Avenue also continues across Waikoloa Road as Pua Melia Street.
Commuters, students, tourists, and others travel in and out of the Village on Paniolo Avenue
every day, passing through the intersection with commuters, tourists, trucks, military convoys,
and other traffic traveling up and down Waikoloa Road.
The Paniolo Avenue-Waikoloa Road intersection has become a busy intersection in the last 15
years. There are stop signs on Paniolo Avenue and Pua Melia Street, and left turn lanes on
Waikoloa Road in both directions. There are crosswalks across all roads. However, there are no
other traffic control devices installed at the intersection.
For several years now, Village residents have raised concerns about vehicle and pedestrian safety
at this intersection and various factors, such as increased trucking, have changed the composition
of the traffic. Multiple landowners near the intersection were obligated by the County to making
capacity and safety improvements to the intersection, but none of these improvements have
started.
The Waikoloa Subcommittee was asked to investigate and report back to the Action Committee
on the reported issues with the intersection, the status of various plans and commitments to
improve the intersection, and recommendations on next steps or other actions that can be taken to
move forward improvements for the intersection.
For brevity, the intersection will be referred to below as the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection, or
just "[the] intersection".
3. Population/Housing/Growth
To understand the change in use of the intersection and the future trends, the
subcommittee is providing the following analysis of Waikoloa Village population growth
and various developments around the Waikoloa Village area.
There has been steady growth in population, housing, and commerce in Waikoloa, as anticipated
in the SKCDP Pages 89. [Appendix CDP 2.]
3.1. Population Growth in Waikoloa & South Kohala
The 2020 US Census is less than one year away, so accurate data on Waikoloa Village's
population is not available; however, prior Census data shows that the Village's population grew
substantially over the past twenty years, and that the trend continues. July 2017 US Census
estimates indicate an 8% increase in Hawaii County's population to 200,381, up from 185,079 in
the official 2010 Census. Conservative estimates are that the Village has grown into a town of
over 7,000 people.
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Year
Big Island Waikoloa
Population Population
% of
Waikoloa Growth
actual or estimated
1990
2,248
N/A
2000
148,677 4,806
113%
2010
185,079 6,362
32%
2020 estimated
1 200,381 7,000+
8%-10% or more
Source: July 2017 US Census estimates
Information from the State Data Book (updated November 2018, Appendix D-1) provides data
on the Resident Population growth by State and Counties (Appendix D-2, Populations by State
& Counties, raw numbers) shows that the Big Island's increases are consistently higher vs. the
State as a whole and any other county.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE by STATE & COUNTIES
Date STATE total City/Co.
Oahu
Hawaii Co. Kauai Co. Maui Co.
2005-2010 1.1 0.8
2.0 1.3 1.6
2010-2017 0.7 0.5
1.1 1.0 1.0
Source: State Data Book 2018. Resident Population growth by State and Counties, Tablel.07.
[Appendix D-3]
Additional information from the State Data Book (2018) data breaks down the Resident
Population of Hawaii County by District by decades from 1990-2010 and from to 2012-
2016. (See modified table below.)
CHANGE RATE BY Hawaii County DISTRICTS
Source of information in WHITE columns: State Data Book 2018. on Percentage Change of
Resident Populations by County: 2000-2017 (Table 1.12)
*Columns in YELLOW were added for this analysis. [Appendix D-41
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1990
2000
2010
2012-16
Increase
1990-
2016
Change
2010-
2016
Hawaii County
120,317
148,677
185,079
193,680
61%
5%
Puna
20,781
31,335
45,326
45,517
119%
0%
South Hilo
44,639
47,386
50,927
52,487
18%
3%
North Hilo
1,541
1,720
2,041
1,676
9%
-18%
Hamakua
5,545
6,108
6,513
7,463
35%
15%
North Kohala
4,291
6,038
6,322
6,441
50%
2%
South Kohala
9,140
13,131
17,627
18,751
105%
6%
North Kona
22,284
28,543
37,875
41,662
87%
10%
South Kona
7,658
8,589
9,997
11,277
47%
13%
Kau
4,438
5,827
8,451
8,406
89%
Source of information in WHITE columns: State Data Book 2018. on Percentage Change of
Resident Populations by County: 2000-2017 (Table 1.12)
*Columns in YELLOW were added for this analysis. [Appendix D-41
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Between 1990-2016, every Hawaii County District grew, especially Puna and South Kohala;
however, between 2010-2016, some Districts leveled off (i.e, Puna), others Districts declined (N.
Hilo, Kau), and the remaining Districts continued to grow, especially in Kona and Hamakua.
South Kohala also grew by 6% during that period.
"Population" in a locale that is popular world-wide with tourists must include the impact of those
visitors on matters related to infrastructure. Valuable data on de facto population comes from
The 2017 State of Hawaii DATA BOOK, A Statistical Abstract, updated in November 2018. De
facto population is defined as the number of persons physically present in an area, of military
status or usual place of residence. It includes visitor present but excludes residents temporarily
absent, both calculated on an Avenuedaily census. Table 1.04 Resident and De Facto
Population, by Residence Status: 2000 to 2017 [Appendix D-5].
The significant take -away from this data is that in every year, the de facto population exceeds the
resident population.
The Waikoloa Plaza developer Meridian Pacific presents related data in their prospectus
regarding visitors/tourists, as follows:
• There are 1,191,470 tourists that visit the west side of Hawaii (Kohala Coast) each year.
• Average stay in Kohala/Kona resorts is 7 days.
• By dividing the number of tourists by the Average stay, the outcome should be the
number of static tourists that are in the Kona/Kohala Coast per week on Avenuerage:
22,912 people/week.
• Number of tourists on an Average/week at 100% occupancy:
o Mauna Lani or North: 7,102
o Waikoloa Village or South: 8,248
Conclusion: Population growth has occurred as predicted and continues in Waikoloa. All
indications are that growth will continue and exceed that of other parts of the State and Hawaii
Island.
3.2. Housing growth and developments in Waikoloa
The number of Waikoloa housing units also increased, as did population density per square mile.
Year
Density/Sq. Mile
Density/House
Housing Units
2000
251
107
2057
2010
356
170
3042
Source, U.S. Census
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A list of housing developments includes:
SUBDIVISION NAME
UNITS
Kaiaulu `O Waikoloa (affordable)
63
Kamakoa Nui (HI Co. Workforce Housing)
1,200
Kilohana Kei Phase I
127
Kilohana Kei Phase II
50
Pua Malia (affordable, formerly Waikoloa Highlands land)
60
Sunset Ridge (Makai)
120
Sunset Ridge (Makai Vistas)
31
Waikoloa Mauka (Waikoloa Road/Mamalahoa Hwy.)
96
Wehilani (Castle & Cooke)
756
Subtotal of Active Housing Projects
21503
Aina Lea See notes *A & *B
2,406
Waikoloa Heights See note *A
2,400
Waikoloa Mauka (RA -1) See note *A
398
Subtotal of Planned Build -out (from CDP)
5,204
TOTAL of Planned Build -out See note *1
71707
Note *1 This correlates with but is LARGER than SKCDP projections of- -9, [7160]
*Note A. These TMK parcels have received the necessary entitlements to develop, but have not
progressed.
*Note B. These TMK parcels are designated by the County LUPAG for Urban Expansion, but
have not progressed.
3.3. Commercial developments in Waikoloa
BioEnergy Hawaii LLC, a Kailua-Kona-based developer of waste -treatment and alternative -
energy systems, plans to start construction on its $50 million resource -recovery and energy -
conversion facility on the Big Island. BioEnergy Hawaii plans to lease about 15 acres of land on
a portion of the property now known as the Waikoloa West Hawaii Concrete Quarry and operate
an integrated resource -recovery facility to divert municipal solid waste from the West Hawaii
Sanitary Landfill and elsewhere.
It will be processing about 200 tons of incoming municipal solid waste per day, which is
collected by local waste haulers, along with a variety of other waste materials. The facility could
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expand to allow for a capacity of 400 tons per day of waste. Of this volume, about 70 percent
would be suitable for energy -conversion operations and the remaining 30 percent would consist
of waste material that would be disposed at West Hawaii Sanitary Landfill, which registers at
more than 500 tons per day. In March, 2017, Hawaii County Planning Department gAvenue its
stamp of approval to the developer.
Conclusion: This project is likely to increase the amount of traffic on Waikoloa Road, and it will
likely decrease the speed of traffic flowing through Waikoloa from the Mamalahoa Highway to
near the Queen Ka'ahumana Highway.
WAIKOLOA PLAZA is being developed by Meridian Pacific, Ltd. in Waikoloa located in the
southwest corner of the main Village intersection. Its promotional materials state that "Waikoloa
Plaza will have a distinctive blend of tenants to provide [residents and] visitors needed daily
services, speciality shopping, entertainment and eateries in the continuously growing Waikoloa
Village community."
Access by motor vehicles to the Plaza will include two major entrances, one on Waikoloa Road
and another on Pua Melia, about 1,000 feet makai of the post office. A thiRoad entrance would
be across from the lower entrance to Waikoloa Highlands Shopping Center on Waikoloa Road.
The 130,000 -square -foot $40 million shopping center will encompass 19 square acres, with 35
retail stores filling spaces ranging from 800 to 35,000 square feet.
Eighty-five percent of Waikoloa Plaza has been leased with tenants including Aloha Petroleum,
Ace Hardware, Foodland, Fitness Forever, Family Health and Wellness, CrossFit AllStar, and
dining outlets such as Balimo's Pizza, Chef TK, L&L Hawaiian BBQ, Strato's New York
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Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
Pizzeria, SushHi and Bodhi Tree Juicery. The developer is also in talks with Nail Salon, Island
Holistic Healing, Verizon, Longs Drugs, Maui Taco's, Dunkin' Donuts, Denny's, The UPS Store
and McDonald's, among others.
The RED circle on the map above is at the intersection of Waikoloa Road and Paniolo
Avenuenue. The VPO (Vehicle Per Day) is 16,600, accoRoading to the Plaza's Prospectus.
A proposed 150 -room hotel is another unique aspect that Meridian Pacific Owner Gary Pinkston
hopes to add to the shopping center. The decision for a hotel was also based on the seat count
into the Big Island being up from 600,000 five years ago to 1.3 million in 2018. At the same
time, the Hilton and others have taken 700 guestrooms out of service for condos.
April 30, 2019, Meridian Pacific broke ground at the site. This site, zoned for commercial
development has been a long-awaited improvement to the area, and is welcomed by most. This
heightens the infrastructure needs in Waikoloa. Community members express concerns that the
shopping center will exacerbate traffic issues on the only road and at the major intersection.
"This shopping center is what we were looking for in our county, and with economic
development will come prosperity for the community," District 9 Councilman Tim RichaRoads
said. RichaRoads is working to address the congestion at the intersection with a traffic signal or a
round -about, depending on the findings of experts in the field.
Conclusion: This project will certainly increase the amount of traffic on Waikoloa Road and
congestion at the intersection at Paniolo Drive. It heightens the urgency to address safety issues
at the intersection via a traffic light or a round -about, and provide another access road to the
Village.
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Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
3.4. State development in Waikoloa: PUBLIC LIBRARY for WAIKOLOA
REGION.
The 2018 legislature authorized the purchase of land in Waikoloa to build a public library. On
April 25, 2019 Governor David Ige released $1.9 million in Capital Improvement Project funds
to buy a 1.750 -acre parcel for the new Waikoloa Public Library. The library is to be located on
one of the parcels in the future Waikoloa Plaza shopping center, near the intersection of
Waikoloa Road and Paniolo Avenuenue. (See above.) The library site would be just past the
existing Post Office building on Pua Melia Street.
Once the parcel is purchased by the state, the Department of Land and Natural Resources is
required to prepare an Environmental Assessment for the project and the public will have the
opportunity to submit comments. After that, the project will start its design phase during which
the community can provide their advice about what should be included in the facility.
Friends of the Library of Waikoloa Region (FLWR) has worked diligently for over a decade to
procure a Public Library for the Waikoloa Region residents and visitors. They are hopeful that
the library will be completed and accessible in 2022.
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3.5. State development in Waikoloa: Waikoloa School (K-8), Building J
Waikoloa Elementary School opened in September of 1994 with 325 students (K-5). The
Elementary school's population grew to @560. In 2007, the BoaRoad of Education authorized
the expansion of the school to incorporate Middle School students. With that, Waikoloa
School's student population has grown to @825 students and @130 staff members. Building J is
a two-story 10 classroom building and is the final phase of the original school plan's build -out. It
is currently under construction in 2019.
4. Traffic, Pedestrians, and Bicycles in the Intersection
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The subcommittee investigated traffic, pedestrian, and bicycle usage of the intersection, as well
as industry best practices for evaluating and addressing safety and capacity concerns with
intersection.
The image above shows the Waikoloa Road - Paniolo Avenue intersection with traffic markings
visible as it is in 2019. The image is from Apple Maps and includes vehicles lined up in the left -
turn lane on Waikoloa Road, turning onto Paniolo Avenue, and a truck in the process of making
a left turn. Labels have been added.
4.1. Traffic Review
Vehicular traffic at the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection has the following traffic patterns, as
indicated by past traffic surveys and observation (Highlands 2005, various traffic counts, casual
observations).
The peak times are morning and afternoon, as is typical. In the morning, traffic leaves Waikoloa
Village via Paniolo Avenue and turns right or left onto Waikoloa Road, e.g. for commuting to
work or school in Waimea, Kona, Hilo, or down to the resorts, or tourists heading out for
activities for the day. There is also traffic up and down Waikoloa Road passing through the
intersection but not turning, e.g. trucking, commuters from Waimea or Hilo down to the resort
areas, tourists coming up from the resort areas heading to other parts of the island.
In the afternoon, the flow is reversed as people return home. The through -traffic on Waikoloa
Road also continues.
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During the day, there is a moderate flow of trucks and other traffic traveling up and down
Waikoloa Road and a lesser flow of traffic in and out of Waikoloa Village. There is an increase
in traffic in and out of Waikoloa Village around lunchtime.
The traffic onto Pua Melia Street is significantly less than onto Paniolo Avenue, primarily driven
by the U.S. Post Office located on Pua Melia Street.
Pedestrians using the intersection are primarily residents from Waikoloa Village walking to and
from the Post Office, but also include people exercising along Waikoloa Road and Pua Melia
Street. Cyclists are often observed riding up and down Waikoloa Road.
These patterns are likely to change significantly in the future, especially vehicular and pedestrian
use of Pua Melia Street, due to the new shopping center and affordable housing that are being
developed there. Vehicle traffic through the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection is also going to
change due to increased trucking activity, such as for trucking waste from the windward side of
the island to the leeward landfill, but will likely be reduced if the DKI extension is constructed
from the Mamalahoa Highway down to the Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway.
4.2. Intersection Safety
The primary risks at the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection are vehicular accidents, particularly
involving traffic turning into or out of Paniolo Avenue and Pua Melia Street, and vehicles hitting
pedestrians crossing Waikoloa Road. These risks are likely exacerbated due to the lack of any
traffic control at the intersection and the frequency of people misunderstanding the traffic rules at
the intersection, especially non-residents, which results in unexpected behavior, such as stopping
as if there were stop signs on Waikoloa Road.
4.3. Intersection Traffic Load and Capacity
Various U.S. state departments of transportation and highway design experts have developed
guidelines for how to determine if an intersection needs to have signalization or other traffic
controls added. This takes out the subjectivity that is common when soliciting feedback on
whether an intersection needs traffic controls, e.g. due to safety concerns or long traffic delays at
peak travel times.
In many states, the state department of transportation will conduct intersection traffic surveys
when appropriate requests are made by individuals or organizations. These surveys will include
traffic flow counts, pedestrian and bicycle counts, analysis of at least three years of accident or
traffic violation data, sight lines and distances at the intersection, and other case-by-case data.
The data is assembled into a traffic analysis report which compares the intersection data vs
industry -standard metrics, to advise if traffic controls, such as traffic signals or stop signs, are
justified. One of the more common metrics that is evaluated is the "Level of Service" of the
intersection, defined in the Highway Capacity Manual, which evaluates the number of seconds a
vehicle is delayed when traveling through or turning at the intersection.
A study of this nature was conducted for the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection back in 2005 as part
of an EIS for a nearby subdivision, the Waikoloa Highlands. This report includes projections for
future traffic at the intersection, but it makes some assumptions about future developments at the
time, such as the Auwaiakeakua Gulch in Waikoloa Village having a bridge and road to
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Waikoloa Road built by 2010, which has not happened as of 2019. Nevertheless, the report
recommended adding a traffic signal to the intersection based on the 2005 analysis and 2010
projections, primarily to address "Level of Service" issues with left turns from Paniolo Avenue
onto Waikoloa Road. (WHTL4, p. 25)
Traffic on Paniolo Avenue and Waikoloa Road were counted in separate activities in 2016 and
2018, although the data was collected in different locations and not incorporated into a formal
traffic analysis report. Traffic at the intersection has also been estimated currently at 16,600
vehicles per day by the Waikoloa Plaza development team, Meridian Pacific (per leasing
brochure, 2018).
4.4. Near-term Pedestrian Usage Increases
Pedestrian and bicycle usage is very likely to increase in the future, within the next two years,
due to the construction of a large shopping center on the south side of Waikoloa Road. This will
drive pedestrian and bicycle traffic from Waikoloa Village (on the north side of Waikoloa Road)
across the intersection to and from the shopping center.
There is also an affordable housing development planned on Pua Melia Street that will have
around 60 units which will also increase pedestrian traffic at the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection,
as people from that development walk across the intersection to the existing shopping center on
the northwest corner of Waikoloa Road and Paniolo Road, and possibly children walking or
cycling to school at Waikoloa Elementary & Middle School.
4.5. Near-term Traffic Increases
Waikoloa Road is currently used as the main thoroughfare between the Mamalahoa Highway and
the Queek Ka'ahumanu Highway. This results in many trucks traveling through the Waikoloa-
Paniolo intersection. Military convoys also use this route and occasionally slow down traffic, but
this is not typically a daily occurrence.
Industrial use and construction projects along Waikoloa Road, such as the West Hawaii Concrete
quarry, the BioEnergy Hawaii plant, West Hawaii Concrete's planned asphalt plant, AES
Distributed Energy's planned solar power plant, the planned trucking of waste from East Hawaii
to the West Hawaii Sanitary Landfill in Puuanahulu, and others, add (or will soon add) to the
daily heavy vehicle traffic.
4.6. Intersection Recommendation
After reviewing the available data, it seems to the members of the subcommittee preparing this
report that the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection needs to have traffic controls added, such as a
traffic signal or a roundabout. However, it is difficult to draw a firm conclusion without having
professionals review current traffic data for the intersection.
Fortunately, intersection traffic control is an extrememly well -studied area with established
standards and procedures for determining how to address intersection traffic and safety. This
would typically consist of a traffic study (or traffic count) performed by the Hawaii County
Traffic Division for the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection.
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Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
The subcommittee therefore recommends requesting that the Traffic Division perform a
traffic count at the intersection and then evaluate the results using their tools and expertise
to determine what improvements, if any, are warranted at this time. The subcommittee also
recommends requesting that the traffic count be repeated every three years to identify further
improvements or changes necessary in the future as the Waikoloa Village area continues to
grow.
In support of this recommendation, it is worth noting that the County of Hawaii has also
recognized the need for improvements to the intersection by adding obligations for developers to
improve the intersection if they proceed with developments on three lots near the intersection,
however, as explained in Section 7 below, this has not resulted in any improvements and does
not appear to be a viable plan for improvements to the intersection in the timeframe they will be
needed.
5. Community Input/Feedback
The members of the subcommittee live in Waikoloa Village and regularly speak with other
residents of the Village. It is hard to produce statistics from these discussions, but it is notable
that in every discussion about the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection, residents always agree that the
intersection is dangerous and needs improvement. Village residents have varying opinions about
what kind of improvement should be made, generally preferring either a traffic signal or a
roundabout, but none of the subcommittee members have experienced a Village resident arguing
that safety improvements are not needed.
One informal survey was conducted on the website "Nextdoor" on their Waikoloa Village
community page. This survey received 76 replies from about 25 Waikoloa Village residents.
There were various opinions about how to improve the safety of the intersection, ranging from
more informative signage and adding stop signs to traffic signals and roundabouts, but everyone
agreed that the intersection needs safety improvements.
Safety of the intersection is also a frequent topic raised at Waikoloa Village Association (WVA)
meetings. The WVA membership consists of over 3000 homes in Waikoloa Village, which the
subcommittee estimates to include at least 2/3 of the Village population. The WVA is asked
regularly, many times each year, if the WVA can improve the safety of the intersection. The
WVA has provided feedback to the County in the past regarding safety improvements being
needed at the intersection.
6. CDP support for Intersection Improvements
In the South Kohala Community Development Plan (SKCDP), a Second Access Road for
ingress and egress for Waikoloa was the top priority, along with overall infrastructure
improvements. In 2008 when the SKCDP was submitted, the Waikoloa-Paniolo
intersection itself was not a "hot topic". Since then, the population of Waikoloa Village
has grown from 4,800 to 7,000 people, a 46% increase.
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Below are the relevant sections of the SKCDP that relate to the intersection.
General Policy 2 of the SKCDP relates to transportation, with sub -policy 2.3 specifically
being "Build safe roads." Kawaihae Road and Waikoloa Road are identified as being
considered dangerous, with the example of not having truck runaway ramps.
In the Waikoloa Policies and Strategies in the SKCDP,
• Policy 3 addresses Transportation & Circulation (Appendix CDP -5)
• Strategy 3.5 recommends the Development of a Master Circulation Plan for
Waikoloa Village. (Appendix CDP -8)
Had a Master Circulation Plan been developed, it would undoubtably have
addressed the Intersection issues with traffic congestion.
• Strategy 3.6 recommends implementing traffic safety improvements along
Waikoloa Road. (Appendix CDP -8)
Improvements to the Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue intersection are not
specifically mentioned, but this Strategy was intended to address any safety issues
related to travel on Waikoloa Road.
The SKCDP also established a Monitoring Plan for South Kohala:
• The Monitoring Plan is a way to track and assess the progress of Policies.
(Appendix CDP -10)
• The specific Monitoring Plan for Waikoloa regarding infrastructure is 9.3.3
"Provide Transportation and Circulation Improvements in a Timely Manner" by
looking at County and State CIP allocations for infrastructure and the number of
public/private partnerships formed to provide for roadways. (Appendix CDP -II)
No Master Circulation Plan has been developed
The SKCDP also referenced the 2005 Hawaii County General Plan and County Codes:
• SKCDP Appendix D is from the County's General Plan (2005) "Courses of
Action" for the District of South Kohala. (Appendix CDP -12).
Under the Transportation: Roadways section, item "j" is: (Appendix CDP -13):
• Provide traffic signals at the Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Drive
intersection.
In SKCDP Appendix E, Referenced County Codes were listed.
• Concurrency Requirements: This section creates standards for road and
water supply in change of zoning actions. Definitions are provided,
including:
• Acceptable levels of service
• Approved development
• Critical road area
• Immediate vicinity of a project
• Level of Service (LOS)
• Local mitigation
• Area mitigation
(Appendix CDP -14)
7. Developer Obligations
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Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
The County recognized decades ago that the Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection would need safety
and capacity improvements. To support this, the County and the LUC added requirements to
three lots near the intersection when the respective owners of those lots, Waikoloa Highlands,
Waikoloa Mauka, and Hawaiian Riverbend, applied for rezoning or subdivision, as early as 1990
(in Ordinance 1990-160, requiring signalization of the intersection, based on a Traffic Impact
Analysis Report (TIAR) from 1989).
Unfortunately, none of the owners have engaged in any substantial development of those
properties and their various requirements to build intersection improvements remain unfulfilled.
In fact, one of the owners, Waikoloa Highlands, has recently had their rezoning revoked due to
inactivity. The owners of the other lots do not show any signs of engaging in development of
their respective properties, resulting in the intersection being unimproved for far longer than the
County envisioned when the requirements were added. For example, Ordinance 1995-051
amended the earlier 1990-160 to require the signalization of the intersection by June 30, 1996.
This deadline was among many missed by the respective developers.
In 2005, the County passed Ordinance 2005-157 which amended the requirement further to
specify a roundabout, and the developer did contract with an engineering firm to create plans for
this improvement, which was noted in a 2016 annual report from Waikoloa Highlands as
"construction plans for the roundabout at the Waikoloa Road/Paniolo Avenue intersection have
been completed." However, the plans were apparently not paid for by the developer and were
never approved or acted upon.
As Waikoloa Highlands was the only developer that had even taken any steps, and they are the
developer that has lost their rezoning due to inactivity, it appears that the reliance on developers
to make the needed safety and capacity improvements to the intersection has failed, and the
improvements are now overdue. It is time for the County to create a new plan that does not rely
on developers, or to find a way to get contributions from developers regardless of their
development progress so that the community involved is not harmed simply because developers
decided not to develop their properties.
8. Improvement/solution Options
As part of researching the Waikoloa Road - Paniolo Avenue intersection, the subcommittee
received some feedback from the community and reviewed some documentation that suggested
adding a traffic signal or a roundabout to the intersection as a solution to the apparent safety and
capacity problems. The subcommittee spent some time to evaluate if one or the other solution, or
even a different solution, would be better for the intersection.
Ultimately, however, it is the responsibility of professionals in traffic design to determine the
correct type(s) of improvement(s) for the intersection, so the subcommittee is providing this very
brief synopsis for information only.
Research into the topic of traffic signals vs. roundabouts revealed that roundabouts are generally
considered safer than traffic signals, as any accidents that occur in a roundabout are typically at a
lower speed than at a traffic signal (or unsignalized intersection), resulting in fewer and less
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severe injuries to any people involved. Roundabouts sometimes result in fewer total accidents of
all types, but occasionally result in a slight increase in total accidents, though with fewer and less
serious personal injuries. The main drawback of roundabouts is that it is more difficult for
pedestrians with vision disabilities to cross the road at a roundabout.
Other options, such as adding stop signs on Waikoloa Road or adding a pedestrian crossing
signal, could be considered, but the subcommittee advises again that the determination of what
improvements should be made should be the responsibility of professionals in the field.
9. Funding/Development Options
There are various funding options for making the needed Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection
improvements. The main options are, in no particular order:
1. County CIP process
2. Department of Public Works, Traffic Division
3. Developer obligations related to rezoning, subdivision, or building plan approvals
The option with the least cost to the County is the developer obligation option, but this has not
worked in this case. The property owners that were given a requirement to make improvements
have not developed their properties, and do not appear that they will do so any time soon, so this
option cannot be pursued unless a new developer enters the picture. See section 7 above for more
details on the current (unsuccessful) developer obligations.
The option that appears to have the shortest path to development is to work with the Department
of Public Works (DPW), specifically starting with the Traffic Division. The Traffic Division
could perform a traffic count at the intersection and then evaluate the data collected using their
expertise and tools. This would result in specific recommendations for improvements that would
address the issues revealed by the Traffic Division's evaluation. The recommendations would
then be passed to the Engineering Division at DPW for further analysis and planning. The
Engineering Division would be able to create a specific plan and request funding via CIP or via a
direct request to the County Council to appropriate funds for the needed improvements. The
improvement project could then proceed as planned by the Engineering Division.
The County CIP process is well-known and follows an annual review and approval process as
part of the County budget. This method of proposing a Waikoloa-Paniolo intersection
improvement project is suggested if the DPW is unable to move forward on the project directly,
or if an opportunity arises to submit a CIP with support from Council Members in the current
budget approval cycle.
10. Conclusion/Recommendations
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Communication No. 2019-10
Waikoloa Subcommittee's Waikoloa Road-Paniolo Avenue Intersection Report
After considering all of the information in this report and numerous source materials (see
References), the members of the Waikoloa Subcommittee believe the Waikoloa-Paniolo
intersection needs to have traffic controls added, such as a traffic signal or a roundabout.
Reiterating the recommendation from Section 4, the subcommittee recommends requesting that
the Traffic Division perform a traffic count at the intersection and then evaluate the results using
their tools and expertise to determine what improvements, if any, are warranted for the
intersection at this time. The subcommittee also recommends requesting that the traffic count be
repeated every three years to identify further improvements or changes necessary in the future as
the Waikoloa Village area continues to grow.
After the Traffic Division completes the traffic count and analysis, and based on the
recommendations the Traffic Division produces, the subcommittee recommends following up
with the Engineering Division, the Department of Public Works, and the County Council to
support the intersection improvements. If needed, the subcommittee also then recommends
submitting a CIP for the intersection improvements.
11. References
Apple Maps copyright information: hgps:Hgs]2e21-ssl.ls.apple.com/btml/attribution-I36.html
Other sources, citations, and references to be updated in additional document.
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