HILO — The ongoing realignment work on the easternmost portion of Saddle Road continues on budget and on schedule.
The project began in April and is expected to be complete in August of next year, weather permitting.
It is the final phase of reconstruction on the east side of the road, Hawaii Department of Transportation spokesman Tim Sakahara said, and takes place between mileposts 5.3 and 11. The road is being widened to have two 12-foot lanes with 8-foot shoulders, along with a climbing lane.
The new roadway will turn south from the existing road at milepost 8.5. It will connect with the Puainako Street Extension.
Contractor Road and Highway Builders, LLC, a Nevada-based company with a Honolulu office, is currently working on excavation, rock crushing and hauling, and embankment construction. Timber is also being hauled from the worksite.
Tree removal has been of particular concern for the project duration because of the threat of spreading rapid ohia death.
Delays of up to 15 minutes at the worksite between mile marker 8.5 and mile marker 11.5 are ongoing because of a single-lane, one-way traffic pattern.
Longer delays are not expected.
The project is a joint effort of the Central Federal Lands Highway Division of the Federal Highway Association and HDOT. Eighty percent of the funding, or more than $46 million, comes from the federal government, Sakahara said.