STAR-BULLETIN / MARCH 2004 Vehicles zip through one of the Wilson Tunnels. Work starting next month will close part of the tunnels for periods.

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Repairs to close
Likelike

Work to replace road surfaces
in the Wilson Tunnels will
affect traffic over 60 days

Crossing the Koolau Mountains will get more difficult for motorists starting July 5.

Wilson Tunnel Closures July 5 to Aug. 5 » Kaneohe-bound tunnel closed. » Kaneohe-bound traffic only between 1 and 8 p.m., with traffic contra-flowed through the Honolulu-bound tunnel. During these times, Honolulu-bound traffic will be diverted to H-3 and Pali Highway. » Tunnels in both directions will be closed from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays during construction periods, with drivers diverted to H-3 and Pali Highway. » Honolulu-bound traffic open between 4 a.m. and noon on weekdays and weekends. Sept. 6 to Oct. 6 (tentative) » Honolulu-bound tunnel closed. » Town-bound traffic only during weekday morning rush hour, contra-flowed through the Kaneohe-bound tunnel. During these times, Kaneohe-bound traffic will be diverted to H-3 and Pali Highway. » Kaneohe-bound schedule has not been finalized.

The two Wilson Tunnels on Likelike Highway will be closed for 30 days each to pour a new concrete road surface. At certain times, both tunnels will be closed for nighttime work.

The Kaneohe-bound tunnel will close July 5 to Aug. 5, and the Honolulu-bound tunnel is expected to close from Sept. 6 to Oct. 6.

The staggered closings will affect drivers as the state Department of Transportation juggles traffic across the Pali during busy hours.

About 30,000 vehicles travel through the Wilson Tunnels daily, and the department is advising motorists to use Pali Highway or the H-3 freeway during the closings.

"This is going to be an inconvenience for the counter-directional folks, but we're asking them to bear with us for 30 days while we do the complete tunnel closure," Transportation Director Rodney Haraga said.

Both tunnels will be closed from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays July 5 to Aug. 5 for night construction.

"The tunnels are usually quite damp on the driving surface," Haraga said. "We've managed to stop the infiltration of water and brighten the tunnel, and now we will finally put in the new concrete surface to make the drive a lot safer."

During the first phase of the work, the department will close the Kaneohe-bound tunnel 24 hours a day. From 1 to 8 p.m., Kaneohe-bound vehicles will be directed into the Honolulu-bound tunnel. Traffic heading to Honolulu during those hours will be stopped before the Wilson Tunnel and directed to Pali Highway or the H-3.

In the second phase, starting in September, the Honolulu-bound tunnel will be closed 24 hours a day. The Kaneohe-bound tunnel will be used for Honolulu-bound traffic during the morning rush hour.

Haraga said motorists will get plenty of advance notice. Electronic message signs will announce the closing starting next week.

He said the state could have closed both tunnels at the same time but chose a staggered schedule after the public expressed a desire for continued access to the Likelike during the construction.

The $13.8 million project to overhaul the Wilson Tunnels started last year with improvements to the Kaneohe-bound bore and is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year.

The tunnels were built in the late 1950s and named for Honolulu Mayor John Wilson.

The last major renovations to the Wilson Tunnels were done in 1979. In 1998 the city transferred management and maintenance of the tunnels to the state.