Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Transportation and Government Operations and Intergovernmental Affairs, to which was referred S.R. No. 48 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to request the Department of Transportation to expedite the completion of the Lahaina bypass project as a top priority and, in cooperation with the county of Maui and stakeholders, to develop strategies to reduce motor vehicle use into and out of Lahaina.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Transportation; Maui County Mayor; four Maui County Council Members; Ka`anapali Development Board; Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa; Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc.; West Maui Taxpayers Association; and nineteen individuals.

The distance from central Maui to Lahaina is only twenty-four miles, yet the trip by motor vehicle between the two points easily takes more than one hour. During the whale watching season or during other peak visitor periods, that trip takes considerably longer. The only road into and out of Lahaina is a two-lane, undivided state highway that is being eroded into the ocean in several places. According to the Department of Transportation's current estimates, phase one of the planned four-phase Lahaina Bypass project, the Lahaina Mini-Bypass, may be done by the second quarter of 2009.

In addition to expediting the completion of the Lahaina Bypass, it is imperative that a complementary demand-side solution be crafted by developing strategies to reduce motor vehicle usage, including reducing the use of visitor rental cars and encouraging residential commuting, on the road into and out of Lahaina.

Your Committees urge the Department of Transportation to seriously consider alternative means of constructing a bypass road, including engaging the hotels and the county to contribute their resources to building a bypass.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Transportation and Government Operations and Intergovernmental Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 48 and recommend its adoption.