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Kokua Line
Question: Can you find out when country buses will be running on King Street again? Hotel Street has been so congested since they started running on Hotel Street. The last time I heard, it was to be midsummer and midsummer has passed. Most buses will
stay on Hotel StreetAnswer: After surveying bus riders and drivers, it was decided that only the morning express buses and Route 40 and 42 buses will return to King Street.
Exactly when that will happen will be announced shortly, according to J. Roger Morton, vice president and director of operations for Oahu Transit Services, which runs TheBus system.
All buses, except for the new CityExpress! and CountryExpress! buses, were detoured to Hotel Street last January because of a King Street sidewalk improvement project.
In the ensuing period, a survey of bus riders showed a majority preferred Hotel Street as the Diamond Head-bound common route because of more transfer opportunities, Morton said. Drivers, meanwhile, feel that the Hotel Street route results in more even bus loads, he said.
Returning Route 40 and 42 buses to King Street should help keep them on schedule to meet "timed transfer pulses at transit centers," Morton said.
But the other bus lines, six of them, will continue to run along Hotel Street.
During the morning rush hour, about half the buses going Diamond Head through the downtown area will be on King and the other half on Hotel. During other times, about 80 percent of the buses will run on Hotel.
Having the express buses on King should eliminate the current congestion on Hotel, Morton said.
Q: There is a cement business on Awaawaloa St. in Mapunapuna. Although the environmental people have checked into it, there is still dust and water going into the sewage drains. Can someone look into this?
A: Based on a complaint received in August, an investigation was conducted and a warning was sent to the company, said Gerald Takayesu, chief of the city's storm-water quality branch.
He said the company in mid-September responded that they would move their washing operation away from the street, use less water and manage their "fugitive dust," Takayesu said.
A city inspector did visit the site last week and found steps have been taken to correct the situation. Based on that finding, no further enforcement action is warranted at this time, Takayesu said.
Mahalo
To a good and honest couple. On Thursday, Sept. 14, I went shopping at Kunia Wal-Mart. After putting my purchases in the car, I returned the cart and forgot to take my purse. Luckily, this honest couple took it to the store. Everything was intact: credit cards, money, etc. Thank goodness. -- M.C.
Auwe
To the older man I was sitting next to at McDonald's in Hilo recently. He was talking loudly about how, if we were to go to war with China, he'd have no problem dropping the bomb on them and how he's fought in three wars to defend his way of life but "those immigrants" keep causing problems and they should go back to where they came from. "This was America, after all."Where's his aloha? He seems to have forgotten that he also descended from "those immigrants," as are most Americans. -- Randall A.
Need help with problems? Call Kokua Line at 525-8686,
fax 525-6711, or write to P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Email to kokualine@starbulletin.com