STAND. COM. REP. NO.  425

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2011

RE:   H.B. No. 506

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B. No. 506 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to protect the health and safety of the people of the Leeward Coast of Oahu, and address their transportation needs, by:

     (1)  Requiring the Department of Transportation (DOT) to conduct a feasibility study on the construction of an alternative access road into and out of the Leeward Coast of Oahu, mauka of Farrington Highway, beginning at Lualualei Naval Magazine Road; and

     (2)  Appropriating $250,000 to conduct the study.

     PVT Land Company, LLC; Naked Cow Dairy; and several concerned individuals testified in support of this bill.  DOT supported the intent of this measure.

     Residents of the Waianae Coast have long suffered from inadequate traffic access into various areas on the Leeward Coast and out to Central Oahu and beyond, especially in times of emergency.  Numerous past instances have caused Farrington Highway, the only access route into and out of the Waianae Coast, to be closed leaving thousands of Leeward Coast residents stranded for hours and demonstrating the need for an additional access route to this area of Oahu.  Although the public has been permitted to use the four-mile, unimproved Kolekole Pass as a detour route to and from the Waianae Coast area during some emergencies, this may not be a realistic or viable long-term option.

     As the lack of a viable and permanent alternate route into and out of the Waianae Coast continues to be a problem, requiring DOT to conduct a feasibility study on the construction of an alternative access road to the area appears reasonable and prudent.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 506 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation,

____________________________

JOSEPH M. SOUKI, Chair