Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.
Waimea beach
bypass road opens
tomorrow morning
However, troublesome surf
as high as 20 feet is predicted
for MondayConcert, rides, games in Haleiwa
By Gregg K. Kakesako
Anzai: Closure 'common sense'
Star-BulletinThe temporary Waimea Bay beachfront bypass road is expected to open at 8 a.m. tomorrow, reconnecting North Shore communities, but with traffic limited to cars and light trucks.
However, North Shore residents could be in for trouble again Monday, when surf as high as 20 feet might roll into Waimea Bay.
Tim Craig, forecaster for the National Weather Service, said "we're looking at another high-surf event on Monday." But Craig cautioned that the information is "very preliminary" at this point.
Waves of up to 20 feet pounded Waimea Bay on Wednesday night and early yesterday morning, washing out a portion of a pedestrian walkway across the beach and causing a slight delay in the construction of the bypass road.
Marilyn Kali, state Department of Transportation spokeswoman, said trucks weighing more than four tons and bicycles will be prohibited from using the roadway. The state also wants to discourage rental car users from driving on the road.
Kali said the road will be open around the clock, pending disruptions by high surf or construction in the area, and will be lighted. Traffic will be monitored closely by police. The speed limit on the 1,022-foot crushed-rock roadway will be 5 miles per hour.Barriers along each side of the bypass road were to be completed today and the final layer of crushed coral added to the driving surface.
Work to repair the temporary pedestrian walkway damaged by the high surf resumed today.
Workers were also expected to continue exploratory work on the Pupukea cliffs overhanging Kamehameha Highway where the March 6 rockslide that closed the only link between Sunset Beach and Haleiwa occurred. However, no excavation work will be done until Monday.
Once the bypass road is open, the city plans to merge its current shuttle service using 18-passenger vans running between Turtle Bay and Haleiwa every 20 minutes, said Roger Morton, spokesman for TheBus.
Morton said the city hopes to keep the shuttle in operation from 4:40 a.m. to midnight daily.
"We are going to be flexible," Morton said, "and will adjust our operations as we go along.
"We are looking for a shuttle schedule that is very workable during the highway disruption."
Currently, the city's shuttle service is between Haleiwa and Waimea, every 15 minutes from 6:26 a.m. to 8 p.m., then every 30 minutes until midnight. The first Waimea-bound shuttle leaves Weed Junction at 6:26 a.m. and continues until 11:15 a.m. Service from Waimea to Haleiwa runs from 6:45 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
On the Sunset Beach side of the bay, the shuttle operates between St. Peter and Paul Mission at Pupukea to Kanalani Place, on the half-hour from 8:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. The shuttle leaves Kanalani Place hourly from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Reporter Suzanne Tswei contributed to this report.
Anzai calls highway
Star-Bulletin staff
closure ‘common sense’KAMEHAMEHA Highway is closed at Waimea Bay because it is dangerous to the public to use the road, state Attorney General Earl Anzai says.
But high surf, although also dangerous and closing Waimea Beach Park, posed a different situation, Anzai said yesterday.
Falling rocks are unpredictable, but waves can be seen during daylight hours and danger can be predicted, he said.
Pedestrians are allowed on the walkway at Waimea Bay when waves do not pose a danger. Lifeguards and Oahu Civil Defense volunteers keep watch at entrances to the walkway and halt traffic when they saw large swells forming.
"Common sense should prevail. The ocean you can see, so you can anticipate danger. If you see the water coming, then you know it's not a good idea to go across," Anzai said.
But no one can see falling rocks until it's too late.
"It's not a question of liability. It's a safety issue," Anzai said.
Concert, rides, games
Star-Bulletin staff
in HaleiwaA free Hawaiian-style concert, tours of the "Baywatch Hawaii" set and games will be the featured attractions at "Ho'olaule'a Haleiwa" Sunday to bring more visitors to the North Shore town, which has seen a drop in business since a rockslide closed Kamehameha Highway in Waimea nearly two weeks ago.
The festival will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
O'Brien Eselu, Kapena, Imua and Ho'onua will be among the entertainers at the concert, to be held at Alii Beach Park, next to Haleiwa Harbor. The "Baywatch" set at John Kalili Surf Center will be open for public tours for the first time.
The television show's scarab boat also will be open for rides around the harbor with stamps from the town's restaurants and shops. Games, including a bungee run and giant slide, will be held at the Northshore Marketplace.
Special city buses will provide shuttle service from Waikiki to Haleiwa and back for $1 a ride. The buses will leave at 8:30, 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. from the Honolulu Zoo and Hale Koa Hotel parking lots.
Free shuttles will be available throughout the day within Haleiwa. Free buses will also run between Turtle Bay and St. Peter and Paul Mission at Waimea Bay.
