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Emergency route
would join roads to
Waianae Coast

The proposed road, from
Makaha to Nanakuli, gives
alternate access in case
Farrington is closed

---

By Harold Morse
Star-Bulletin

A proposed Waianae Coast emergency access road wouldn't qualify as a superhighway, but it might give relief to motorists if Farrington Highway shuts down for any reason.

Possible routes mauka of Farrington have been suggested by a city consultant, Gray Hong Bills and Associates.

The mapped roadways are as crooked as a dog's hind leg as they jut back and forth between the foothills and the coast.

It's a matter of connecting back roads from Makaha to Nanakuli to provide a continuity to allow traffic to move, according to the city. Some bridge construction may be required.

"Everything is very tentative," said Carol Costa, city spokeswoman.

A $1 million planning cost estimate is only a ballpark figure, she said.

The idea is to provide a second access if natural disasters or incidents such as a police standoff block Farrington -- the one way in and out of the Waianae Coast.

A second road could cost $30 million to $48 million, planners said.

Two major water-main breaks since May made Farrington Highway all but impassible. In January, a standoff with a gunman caused police to block the highway for 13 hours, stranding thousands of motorists.

The city's engineers are expected to begin meetings soon with neighborhoods in the area, said Charles Herrmann Jr., chairman of the Waianae Neighborhood Board transportation committee.

It is anticipated that citizens will break into working groups that will meet on different nights to allow each community -- Waianae, Nanakuli, Maili/Lualualei and Makaha -- to plan out its own section, Herrmann said.