State will dig up Ala Moana Blvd.

A resurfacing project starts Monday with trenches being dug during night hours

Expect some traffic woes on Ala Moana Boulevard throughout the rest of the year, as the state begins a resurfacing project Monday.

The yearlong $12.5 million project will resurface and maintain the stretch of road between Fort Street and a point just after Piikoi Street.

The project was bumped up from its original start date of later this year, due to the chipped and sagging condition of the road. The road was last resurfaced in 1992.

PAVING THE WAY » The state's $12.5 million resurfacing project on Ala Moana Boulevard will stretch from Fort Street to Piikoi Street. Expected completion date is January 2008. » The first phase begins Monday, involving digging trenches along the road to install new streetlights. Most of that work will be done from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday through Friday. A single lane may be closed in both directions, but no work will be done on Friday or Saturday nights. » In mid-April, the contractor will replace concrete bus stop pads along Ala Moana Boulevard. It will involve right-lane closures from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday for about 12 weekends. » The final portion, to commence in May or June, will resurface the road, and will involve closing lanes during overnight work. State officials expect this work to occur during late nights and early mornings.

Project contractor Grace Pacific begins work Monday evening, and most of it will be done overnight between 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., Sunday through Friday morning. No construction is planned for Friday or Saturday nights.

Initial work involves digging trenches to install new streetlights, repair sidewalks and replace electrical wiring.

Concrete bus stops along the road will be replaced around mid-April. That work will involve 24-hour weekend closures of the right lanes along Ala Moana Boulevard.

Because the concrete pads for the bus stops need to cure -- three days are needed -- the right lanes will be closed from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday for about 12 weekends.

And in June, complete resurfacing of the roads will commence, and will entail closed lanes and rerouting traffic during late nights and early mornings.

The work also will include adding drainage in front of the old Gold Bond Building to prevent the constant forming of ponds after heavy rains, as well as replacing the asphalt curb in front of Ala Moana Park. Brennon Morioka, state Department of Transportation deputy director, called it "preventative maintenance."

"The road is actually sinking because of the load of the trucks," Morioka said at a news conference near Nimitz Highway.

The path is one of Oahu's most traveled arterial roadways, with up to 80,000 vehicles on it per day, including big rig trucks with goods shipped in from the docks and the airport, lunch traffic and tour buses packed with tourists.

Morioka pointed out the pockmarked lanes in front of the CompUSA store as an example.

"We really need to focus on maintenance of the roads and keeping our existing facilities operational without this kind of damage," Morioka said. "All the trucking companies use this road."

The state also plans to resurface Ala Moana Boulevard from the Piikoi intersection to Kalakaua Avenue, but that won't start until early 2008, Morioka said.

The state promises that adding more than 2 inches of Superpave asphalt concrete mix along the 1.6-mile stretch will create a quieter, smoother ride. The project is 80 percent paid for with federal funds, with a 20 percent state match.