When the Laaloa Avenue extension opened in late January, it represented a smooth and much-awaited connector between Alii Drive and Kuakini Highway. But like so many other shiny new — and steep — streets, it also presented an opportunity for speeding.
Police are still trying to determine exactly how fast people drive on the 5,700-foot stretch of asphalt. Prompted by complaints from residents, they recently mounted a StealthStat data collector on a utility pole and measured the rate of travel of some 4,400 uphill-bound vehicles. Of those, 85 percent were traveling 36 mph, or 11 mph over what the law allows.
That’s higher than it should be, said Hawaii Police Department Kona Patrol Capt. Randall Ishii.
Next, the police department will be using the StealthStat to measure downhill traffic. Ishii is assuming those speeds will be higher still. The device allows law enforcement to get a snapshot of what is going on in a particular area and to determine what time of day that most speeding occurs so they can make best use of officer time, Ishii said.
Periodic speeding enforcement will be in place on Laaloa Avenue, he said.
Laaloa is, in a way, only the newest problem. On Lako Street, which has sobering grades and no speed humps, excessive acceleration has been a chronic issue.
Kaiminani Drive, Nani Kailua Drive and other steep roads through residential areas remain problematic, Ishii said.
“People are speeding all over the island,” he said.
Fred Lindsey lives below one of the three speed humps on Laaloa — and below a mobile reader board the county is using to remind drivers of the 25 mph zone and to “drive with aloha.” On Tuesday, Lindsey stood in his driveway and pointed out two cars in a row booking up the avenue at speeds he guessed were somewhere between 40 and 45 mph.
“Now he’s slowing down for the speed hump,” Lindsey observed, watching the brake lights flash.
In general, though, Lindsey is happy with what the extension has brought. With traffic signals, bike lanes, sidewalks, drainage improvements and a median on the mauka portion, the project was completed at a cost of $12.24 million.
“Some people come through here way too fast, and they always have,” he said. “We’d like one more speed bump. Other than that, we’re pretty happy.”
Having access to Kuakini Highway has been great, he said, and the amount of traffic coming past his house hasn’t been nearly the volume he feared. Instead, the extension seems to have drawn away as much traffic as it has created by giving residents of mauka areas another way into town besides going by his home.
Kona Councilman Dru Kanuha said it has become increasingly common for residents of different subdivisions to ask for traffic-calming devices like speed humps. It points to a larger problem of how people conduct themselves on the roads and opens questions about how that should be addressed, Kanuha said.
“We need to think in terms of hoomanawanui,” Kanuha said. “We do live in a close-knit community and we should be following the laws.”