Question: The city has been testing different traffic-lane configurations on Hamakua Drive next to Kailua Road in Kailua. Why?
Answer: The temporary changes you noticed on Hamakua Drive last month were part of traffic studies the city Department of Transportation Services conducted to gauge the potential effects of expanding bike lanes there.
A bikeway on Hamakua Drive between Keolu Drive and Kailua Road is a Priority 1 project in the Oahu Bike Plan, a comprehensive report that guides DTS in it efforts to make Oahu more easily traversed by bicycle.
The plan, which was published in 2012 and updates the 1999 Honolulu Bicycle Master Plan, ranks proposed projects from 1 (highest) to 3 in terms of priority.
The city conducted traffic studies on Hamakua Drive on weekdays and on a weekend, reducing vehicular traffic to one lane in each direction, according to a news release from the city.
On March 1, the department held a public meeting at Kailua District Park to discuss the proposed bikeway on Hamakua Drive. The “spirited meeting” drew about 80 people, according to the city Honolulu Bicycle Program, which posted two photos of the gathering on its Facebook page.
It’s not too late to weigh in, even though you missed the meeting. For more information, see honolulu.gov/bicycle.
Q: We live in a residential area where the city’s streetlights have been dimmed down and are a safety issue. Waialae Iki streets are so dark at night many of our seniors who enjoy walking are afraid to do so at night. Who can we contact to file a complaint?
A: Call the city’s Traffic Electrical Maintenance Services Branch at 768-5300 to report streetlights that are not working. If you think this is an intentional change, and not a malfunction, you could also contact your City Council representative and the mayor’s office to register your safety concern.
Changing landscape
The public is welcome when the city Department of Planning and Permitting presents the final draft of the Ala Moana Neighborhood Transit-Oriented Development Plan on Wednesday evening at Washington Middle School. The community meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria.
According to the DPP, the plan is the culmination of broad input and feedback gathered to forge a community-based vision for the area within walking distance of the future Ala Moana Center rail station. The draft incorporates urban mixed-use development, with new heights and densities, safer pedestrian crossings and routes that serve all modes of transportation (per the Complete Streets concept), and other elements.
Following the community meeting, DPP will finalize the plan and send it to the Planning Commission and City Council for action. For more information, please visit honolulu.gov/TOD.
Tax forms
Another option for folks seeking hard copies of federal tax forms: Call the Internal Revenue Service at 800-829-3676, and, after choosing your preferred language, press 2 to request that federal tax forms be mailed to you. We’ve heard mixed reviews of this service; some readers rave about prompt, efficient service, while others complain about slow delivery. Given that there’s still more than a month before taxes are due, it may be worth a shot. You also can place a delivery order online, at 808ne.ws/1puHLUs.
Mahalo
While driving on Kameha- meha Highway on Feb. 23, heading toward Pali Highway, I suddenly had to stop. While wondering what was happening, I noticed the following: two cars ahead of me, I saw the passenger door open and a guy step out and quickly retrieve a toddler who was really close to the highway. Someone from a business located there came for the child. I wanted the good Samaritan to know that as a fellow human, I commend you and the driver for your observation and good deed. Thank you for your heroism. So often in our society, the negative news is published. I want the positive deed that took place to also be recognized.
— An appreciative fellow driver
Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
