Too many speed humps planned on Nani Kailua Drive
How many speed humps does it take to slow traffic on Nani Kailua Drive?
According to the County of Hawaii, the answer is nine, plus two stop signs. That’s right. The county is planning on installing nine speed humps that would cover the four-block radius from Queen Kaahumanu Highway to Hienaloli Street.
What I still don’t know is who is more reckless? The drivers on Nani Kailua Drive or the County of Hawaii in making this type of decision that will only make a bad situation worse.
Margo Elliopoulos
Kailua-Kona
Green waste fee acceptable, traveling to Waikoloa is not
Mahalo for the discussion on requiring small commercial gardeners to deliver their client’s green waste to the Waikoloa facility and pay a tipping fee. While paying this fee may be acceptable, the distance to travel is not.
It can be justified for the dump trucks and container-size vehicles that presently travel to Waikoloa, but certainly not the pick up truck size loads of 6 cubic yards or 500 pounds that we 100-plus small gardeners carry for our residential clients.
Some of the unintended consequences of the change will be the volume of vehicles added to already congested roads, both on the highway and in town, during peak hours. The fuel, labor and energy expense of a two-plus hour roundtrip dwarfs the value of the leaves, branches and clippings being hauled 30 miles or more if coming from Ka’u through South and North Kona. Safety is also an issue because the Waikoloa facility is not controlled by a traffic signal in that heavily traveled area.
Please note that we gardeners are carrying the green waste of several residential clients per load and without us, they also will be on the road and in line at the transfer station.
And then when the airport roadwork begins?
The cumulative costs of the delivery could truly put some of us out of business … “It’s not Broke” … Please consider leaving the present system intact and charge us the permit fee in Kona and other transfer stations, which has been discussed at previous Hawaii County Council meetings.
Bill Downes
Kona Quality Gardening
Holualoa