{"id":446,"date":"2026-06-06T11:05:37","date_gmt":"2026-06-06T11:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=446"},"modified":"2026-06-06T11:05:37","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T11:05:37","slug":"saddle-road-improvements-set-to-begin-after-state-declares-traffic-emergency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=446","title":{"rendered":"Saddle Road improvements set to begin after state declares traffic emergency"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>The state Department of Transportation on Monday will begin work on the Hilo side of Daniel K. Inouye Highway that authorities hope will end a spate of crashes which have resulted in five fatalities this year \u2014 all within a period of less than a month.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=444\">In stacked National League, can Shohei Ohtani win Cy Young with fewer innings?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The state Department of Transportation on Monday will begin work on the Hilo side of Daniel K. Inouye Highway that authorities hope will end a spate of crashes which have resulted in five fatalities this year \u2014 all within a period of less than a month.<\/p>\n<p>In an online meeting Friday that was required as part of DOT\u2019s declaration of a traffic emergency zone on the highway between the 5.5- and 28-mile markers, engineer Clifford Corpuz said short-term measures to be taken include the installation of open-graded friction course in the areas between mile markers 6 and 19 where surface water ponds on the roadway.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Friction course is a highly porous asphalt mixture used as the surface layer on high-speed roadways that allows water to drain directly through the pavement into the underlying dense-graded layer \u2014 reducing the chances of motorists hydroplaning and losing control of their vehicle.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019ll take about a month to install,\u201d said Corpuz, who estimated the cost of the paving will be about $15 million. \u201cWe\u2019re going with state funds at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The traffic emergency zone declaration \u2014 which the DOT announced Friday after a fiery fatal crash a day earlier on DKI Highway, also known as Saddle Road \u2014 allows DOT to accelerate procurement and permitting for additional engineering mitigation.<\/p>\n<p>Corpuz said the open-graded friction course was installed about a decade ago in Kaawalii Gulch, the northernmost of three horseshoe gulches on Hawaii Belt Road between Hilo and Honokaa.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo, we\u2019re going to start more mauka, which is mile markers 16 to 19,\u201d Corpuz said, adding that crews will then pave the more makai stretch. \u201cThe reason that we\u2019re starting on mile marker 16 to 19 is because that\u2019s where we have a higher rate of fatalities in that area.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019ll take approximately a month to get this open-graded friction course completed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Corpuz said after that\u2019s completed, the road will be restriped between the 5.5- and 28-mile markers with a paint that provides greater visibility during inclement weather \u2014 which on DKI Highway can include dense fog as well as heavy rain.<\/p>\n<p>In-lane thermoplastic rumble strips and additional \u201ccurve ahead\u201d chevron signs will also be installed.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=442\">Hawaii National Guard on standby for wildfire season<\/a><\/p>\n<p>DOT spokeswoman Shelly Kunishige said there will also be speed cameras installed on the highway as part of the short-term mitigation plan. Registered owners of vehicles detected by the cameras exceeding the posted speed limit by 11 mph or more will be sent a warning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs part of the speed camera installation, they\u2019ll be doing a seven-day speed survey, so we can get more data, basically, on the speeds that people are currently going on the highway,\u201d Kunishige said. \u201cBut I will note that some of our data has shown that people are going up to 109 mph on DKI Highway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>DOT crews have conducted sight-distance studies, closed multiple passing zones between mile posts 8.3 to 27.25, posted electronic signs with safety messaging and recently installed thermoplastic curbs and flexible delineators between mile posts 16.7 and 19.<\/p>\n<p>The department is also in the process of an engineering study for long-term improvements which could include a full divided highway conversion, installation of medians within the existing right of way, and\/or alternate passing lanes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll be getting a report, I guess, within four months on what potential long-term options we\u2019ll be going with,\u201d Corpuz said. Noting that turning the DKI into a full divided highway is \u201cthe most expensive option\u201d being considered, he added, \u201cWe\u2019re not yet set on which one, but we\u2019re looking into them all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Aaron Stene of Kailua-Kona noted during the meeting the state is cutting a half-billion dollars from its Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, or STIP, over the next decade, from $3.2 billion to $2.7 billion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf the highway is widened, it will take funding from other projects. I\u2019m concerned about this,\u201d Stene said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAny large-scale project like this would need to go through the STIP process,\u201d Kunishige replied.<\/p>\n<p>According to Kunishige, the traffic zone emergency designation \u201cmay continue for a period of up to five years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=440\">Knicks hold off Spurs, take 2-0 lead in NBA Finals<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Email John Burnett at john.burnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Saddle Road improvements set to begin after state declares traffic emergency &#8211; Hawaii News | Hawaii Tribune-Herald<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":445,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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