Sharp-eyed motorists on Oahu may have glimpsed unique signs posted recently at a few spots along the H-1, H-2 and H-3 freeways.
The Hawaii Department of Transportation made and installed the signs commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Eisenhower Interstate System, which includes Oahu’s three freeways programmatically though not physically.
The signs were designed by the Federal Highway Administration, and are also part of the Trump administration’s “Freedom 250” initiative to celebrate the founding of the United States in 1776.
HDOT, which was invited by the federal agency to participate in the anniversary sign program along with other states, said it spent $8,000 to make and install six signs — four for H-1 and one each for H-2 and H-3.
The four H-1 signs are between Waikele and Kaimuki,
including three facing
westbound traffic and one in the eastbound direction. The H-2 sign is southbound, and the H-3 sign is windward-bound.
The signs are to remain up until the end of 2027.
FHA, part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, unveiled the sign design last month to recognize President Eisenhower’s 1956 enactment of an act providing federal funding for highways to boost commerce, defense and general travel.
“Americans’ mobilities and roadways have shaped our national character and identity thanks to the infrastructure and security established by the Federal Aid Highway Act 70 years ago today,” Robin Dale, deputy librarian at the Library of Congress, said during a June 29 ceremony.
The act preceded Hawaii becoming a state
by three years. When Hawaii joined the union in 1959, there were already plans for H-1, H-2 and H-3 along with expectations for the federal government to pay 90% of the cost for the three freeways stretching about 50 miles under what was then known as the National Interstate
and Defense Highway
System.
Work on what would become H-1, Lunalilo Freeway, was already in progress, with an initial section opening in 1953 near University Avenue, according to HDOT, which also said the H-1 designation first appeared on maps in 1967.
State planners early
on had expected to complete all three Oahu freeways by 1972 at a cost of $275 million. Later, the projection was pushed back to 1976 at a cost of $650 million.
H-1 was completed in 1986 and cost a little over $500 million, according
to HDOT.
H-2 was built from 1970 to 1977 at a cost of about $44 million, and according to a 2024 HDOT report
represented the “first Interstate in Hawaii to fully become operational over its entire length.”
H-3 faced heavy opposition and litigation partly over proposed routes
and design impacting
cultural areas. It was finished in 1997 at a cost of
$1.3 billion.
There also were plans for a fourth Oahu freeway, H-4, which HDOT said encountered opposition and was “briefly” considered in 1968 to run makai of H-1 between Kalihi and Kaimuki. The agency’s 2024 report said a makai freeway corridor continues to be studied in conjunction with creating a Sand Island road route with tunnels under Honolulu Harbor channels.
Federal officials are seeking proposals from states to expand the interstate highway system, including the addition of new sections and widening existing stretches plagued by congestion.
HDOT has ongoing
H-1 improvement projects that include eastbound widening in the Kalihi area and construction of a third phase of the Kapolei
interchange.
