Zipper Lane head count
increases to 3 tomorrow
Cars in the Zipper Lane on the H-1 Freeway from 5 to 7 a.m. will need at least three occupants beginning tomorrow. From 7 to 8:30 a.m., vehicles in the lane will need only two people.
The state has allowed two people per vehicle in the Zipper Lane throughout the morning commute since the city bus strike.
Officials kept the new rules after the strike ended to avoid confusion.
"We also wanted to see how traffic would flow with two people per vehicle in the Zipper Lane, but found it became too congested," said state Department of Transportation Director Rodney Haraga.
The Zipper Lane runs from Waikele to the Airport Viaduct from 5 to 8:30 a.m. on weekdays.
Haraga said the Nimitz Contraflow Lane will remain at two people per vehicle until next year, when the Zipper Lane and Nimitz Contraflow are connected.
The $9 million project will create one continuous route for car-poolers from Central Oahu into Downtown.