‘Roads in limbo’ compound upkeep problems on island

For decades, Oahu and the neighbor islands have grappled with hundreds of miles of so-called “roads in limbo,” and the issue continues to affect some local road maintenance, officials say.

For a 1989 state report, Honolulu officials identified more than 400 lane miles of disputed road on Oahu that neither the county nor the state wanted to claim. Those lane miles were part of nearly 450 different streets.

“When calls for assistance are made to the county, the county refers them to the state. When calls are made to the state, the state refers them back to the county,” that Legislative Reference Bureau report stated. “The jurisdiction over these roads remains in dispute, and it is the residents who pay the price.”

The disputes leave “a significant number of roads in all four counties in substandard conditions and without routine maintenance because no government body will accept responsibility for them,” according to the report.

Twenty-seven years later the state and county continue to spar over the issue with no real solution. The number of roads affected is likely about the same, said Ross Sasamura, the city’s Department of Facility Maintenance director.

Last year, as part of the negotiations to extend the tax surcharge that’s funding Oahu’s rail project, finance leaders in the state Legislature proposed that any county that adopted the surcharge would also have to put in writing that they own the “disputed highways” there. They later shelved the proposal (and eventually approved the tax extension).

The local roads-in-limbo problem involves disputes over private ownership, too. Today one of the most high-profile disputes involves a cluster of streets in Kakaako that a private company, Kakaako Land Co., says it owns. Kakaako Land now charges rent for parking along those streets, which include Ward Avenue and Queen, Cooke, Cummins, Clayton, Ilaniwai, Kawaiahao and Waimanu streets. Several small businesses in the area have filed suit, asserting that Kakaako Land’s claim to the streets is invalid.

In August city officials informed Kakaako Land that it would no longer do maintenance on Waimanu, Kawaiahao and Queen streets because the company restricts parking there. The city has a private-roads ordinance that allows it to take care of such streets provided they meet 12 criteria, including that it allow access for the general public and not restrict parking.

Potholes riddle stretches of private streets in that area.

John Kobelansky Jr., a resident in the Imperial Plaza condominium on Cooke Street, said in written testimony to the City Council in March that leaving parking control and maintenance of Kakaako streets in private hands is nonsensical.

“Let’s say you run your car into a new pothole on your way to work just outside your driveway in Kakaako and it’s the same pothole that you again run into after work,” he wrote. “How long is it going to stay there? The answer should be obvious, but it’s not. … And this is Kakaako, site of megalithic constructions and luxury hi-rises? This has got to stop. We are amidst the biggest and perhaps ‘baddest’ urban renewal makeover in the entire history of Honolulu.”

Sasamura encouraged drivers to call the city, 768-3343, with any concerns if they see road maintenance being neglected. “I think that’s where the initial action is going to have to take place” to fix many of the island’s roads in limbo — from the public reporting such roads falling through the cracks, he said.

Part of the problem is that the roads in limbo will require more dollars for upkeep, regardless of which agency eventually takes ownership, Sasamura said. He said that budgeting money — whether that’s by city or state — will go a long way toward solving the problem.

FILLING IN THE CRACKS

Two commonly used methods of repairing failing roads

CRACK SEAL

Often a city or state will use “crack seal” or “crack fill” — usually some kind of asphalt rubber material — to fill in cracks that appear early into the life of a road. These treatments are typically a way to help extend a road’s life. They leave behind dark lines in random patterns across the road, and they prevent water from seeping inside and making the cracks worse.

SLURRY SEAL

Other times an agency will add a coat of “slurry seal” on the road, and also on top of the crack seal or filling. Slurry seal is thinner than asphalt. It is made from emulsion and finely ground rock. The goal is to extend the road’s life as long as possible between pavings. That way, driving is smoother and long-term maintenance costs are less.

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INSIGHTS

Local asphalt suppliers, pavement industry experts and local officials recently shared insights into Oahu’s asphalt roads. Here are some highlights:

MOTHER NATURE TAKES TOLL

The two biggest culprits for breaking apart asphalt roads are the sun, with its ultraviolet rays, and water — two elements that Hawaii has in abundance. Still, other regions face about as much strain as the islands to keep their roads in good shape. Oahu doesn’t have to deal with freezing and thawing that helps degrade roads in the Midwest, for instance.

Desert areas don’t have as much rain as Hawaii, but they get intense sun and heat. Most places in the U.S., “if you’re not fighting both of them (sun and rain), you’re fighting one or the other,” said Tim Morris, regional sales manager for Chandler, Ariz.-based Crafco, which sells road preservation materials.

“Different problems, different beasts,” added Amit Bhasin, a University of Texas at Austin associate professor. Every agency has the potential to keep roads in top shape despite the climate; it just needs the will to do so, they said.

IT’S A MATTER OF MAINTENANCE

Most of the aggregate — the stone — used for Oahu’s asphalt roads comes from quarries in Kapaa and Makakilo. Asphalt suppliers say the basalt rock is exceptional at absorbing the “binder” — the asphalt’s glue material. Thus, they say, roads made with these stones don’t strip apart as easily, putting Hawaii at a natural advantage for its local road materials. But local agencies need to take care of those roads or they will degrade quickly. “It’s a matter of proper maintenance,” said Scott Komatsu, the hot-asphalt plant manager for the island’s largest supplier, Grace Pacific.

‘MODIFIERS’ PROVE EFFECTIVE

Many places have special “modifier” substances added to the asphalt glue to make their heavily used roadways stronger. State transportation officials used such a modifier to resurface the H-1 freeway in town. Asphalt with those additives costs more, however. The city, which maintains streets with less traffic, doesn’t use modifiers, but “it’s something we need to take a look at” for certain roads, Department of Facility Maintenance Director Ross Sasamura said.

GRAVEL NOT AS DURABLE

Oahu’s major city roads are typically about 15 inches thick (which includes the surface and two base layers), while smaller roads are 8 to 10 inches thick, officials say. If a road is too thin, “it wasn’t built to city standards,” Sasamura said. Only in recent decades did the city require that the road’s secondary layer of base just beneath the surface be asphalt-treated, he added. Prior to that it could be gravel, which isn’t as durable, Sasamura said.

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Marcel Honore, Star-Advertiser

Star-Advertiser reporter Andrew Gomes contributed to this report.