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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Asphalt used as
quick fix for potholesQuestion: On the H-1 freeway, airport viaduct, why do they use asphalt to patch holes on a concrete highway?
Answer: Essentially, because it's a quick fix.
It's faster to put down asphalt since there are so many potholes, according to Scott Ishikawa, spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.
"Asphalt patching can be done in a matter of minutes, while concrete patching involves hours because of the cure time required," he explained.
The Transportation Department is looking at putting out a contract to fix all the potholes on the viaduct in fiscal year 2005 (July 1, 2004, to June 30, 2005).
Ishikawa also explained that "asphalt patching is done if there are no night closures scheduled for the area," as well as to alleviate the workload of the Highways Division's five-man "structures crew."
Because closing down part of the highway during the day is proving too inconvenient for motorists, work is done at night.
"Unfortunately, a lot of the night work for the structures crew is spent on guardrail work," Ishikawa said.
To give you an idea of the workload, he said the structures crew is responsible for maintaining 170 lane miles of concrete pavement, 64 shoulder miles of concrete barriers, 2,330,000 square feet of sidewalk, 765,000 linear feet of fencing, 1,136,900 linear feet of guardrail and 975 guardrail end treatments (crash cushions, breakaway ends).
Every year, the Highways Division sees about $250,000 worth of guardrail damage, Ishikawa said.
Currently, there is a $700,000 backlog of guardrail repair.
Q: What type of regulations are there (i.e., maximum decibels allowed) for property line noise hazards? My neighbors recently installed central air conditioning, and the noise from the unit is very disturbing. We have purchased double-pane windows, etc., but we still hear the noise (think of a large refrigerator in your living room).
A: Under state noise laws, "steady state noise" is regulated by the state Department of Health's Noise, Radiation and Indoor Air Quality Branch.
Call the branch at 586-4700, and an inspector can check to see if your neighbor's air-conditioning unit meets the noise standard for a residential neighborhood, which is a maximum of 55 decibels from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 45 decibels from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Russell Takata, program manager with the Noise, Radiation and Indoor Air Quality Branch, pointed out that many residential lots are zoned R-5, which allows exterior building walls five feet from the property line.
"That makes this kind of AC problem a bigger problem," he said. Takata also noted that from his experience, some brands and types of air conditioners are far noisier than others.
"We get complaints off and on," he said, referring to air conditioners.
Inspectors will take a decibel reading at or beyond the property line, Takata said.
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Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered.
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