Question: Why is it that, only months after being installed, the concrete bus pads on Keolu Drive, between Akaakaawa Street and Kalanianaole Highway in Enchanted Lake, were torn up and replaced by cheap asphalt? (Five similar queries received.)

Answer: The digging up and replacement of the concrete pads on Keolu Drive did not cost the city anything, except time to complete its road resurfacing project.

There have been many "mischaracterizations and/or information" about the removal of the concrete pads, specifically, "that time is an indication of acceptance and the taxpayer is now responsible for the repair," said Lori Kahikina, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction.

"The basic answer is the city never accepted the original construction and the replacement cost is the contractor’s responsibility," she said.

In defense of the contractor, Grace Pacific Corp., and subcontractor, Kahikina noted there were "challenges" in constructing the concrete pads on the relatively steep Keolu Drive incline.

"However, they have never shirked their obligation under the contract," she said. Grace Pacific deferred comment to the city.

Construction of the concrete bus pads began about September 2009 as part of a $6.9 million street rehabilitation project. Resurfacing of Keolu Drive began about December 2009 and the work was substantially completed in March 2010, Kahikina said.

However, the contractor was informed that pads in the northeast- and southwest-bound lanes on Keolu Drive "did not meet the contract requirements for planeness (meaning level, flat surface) and/or ride quality," she said.

The contractor attempted to salvage the original pads by first grinding the surface, then ultimately offered to reconstruct them, she said.

Regarding using asphalt, Kahikina said the city received "a couple of complaints regarding vibration (on the concrete pads)," although there are "different opinions in regard to that matter."

But considering other factors, including the steep roadway and extended disruption to residents and motorists if the concrete pads were replaced "in kind," the decision was made to reconstruct the 10-inch-thick concrete pads with an equal thickness of Hot Mix Asphalt.

Concrete is less susceptible to rutting, Kahikina acknowledged, but "no fatigue was observed in the existing thinner (asphalt) pavement prior to construction."

She said it is difficult to calculate the dollar amount of the pad-redo, completed Aug. 5, because the pads were "a very small portion" of the street rehab project: "Rest assured, though, the replacement of the concrete bus pads with (the asphalt) was entirely at the cost of the contractor and not the city."

Bus Shelters Up

Two shelters are up at the bus stop on Kamehameha Highway, near Anna Miller’s restaurant in Pearlridge, where there was one.

A bus user complained about the roof of the old shelter being removed but never replaced (is.gd/kokualine-07122011).

"The existing Pearlridge shelter that had its roof removed earlier was demolished to make room for these two bus shelters," Wayne Yoshioka, director of the city Department of Transportation Services, told us. "This is a heavily used bus stop, and these two shelters are a welcome replacement."

Auwe

To residents who feed birds on the street near other homes. There is a reason establishments say, "Do Not Feed the Birds": It’s because they carry diseases and mites. Please feed them in your own yard and upwind from your neighbors if you must, or preferably not at all. — Fine With Birds, Not Mites

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