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KRYSTLE MARCELLUS / KMARCELLUS@STARADVERTISER.COM
The ZipMobile was back at work at around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday to finally close the ZipperLane and alleviate traffic backed up in the westbound lanes of the H-1 freeway.
The Zipper Lane of the H-1 freeway has been closed in time for rush-hour traffic after the ZipMobile that broke down in March stalled once again Wednesday.
The Hawaii Department of Transportation said the Zipper Lane was completely closed at 2 p.m. between the Nimitz Highway westbound on-ramp, near Sand Island Access Road, and the H-1 airport off-ramp, and that all freeway lanes are open for normal afternoon traffic.
DOT crews towed the disabled ZipMobile in order to “re-zip” the zipper lane, said spokesman Tim Sakahara.
On March 31, a faulty power pack that powers the ZipMobile’s retractable arm caused a computer failure that left the zipper lane open.
This time, Sakahara said, the main engine that runs the ZipMobile itself suffered an electrical malfunction.
“Fortunately, the engine that powers the arm is still OK,” Sakahara said. “This time it’s the engine that moves the vehicle forward and backwards.”
In March, the same ZipMobile stalled in the Waikele area while removing the extra carpool lane used for the morning eastbound rush.
DOT officials knowingly violated DOT protocol to have at least one ZipMobile operable and removed the good powerpack from the back-up ZipMobile.
Once inside the primary ZipMobile, however, the replacement power pack also failed.
A technician from California had to fly to Hawaii to repair it, and a massive traffic backlog resulted for 36 hours.
