Question: Can you help us find out who did the traffic counts on Lunalilo Home Road between Kaumakani and Anapalau streets last August and what the results were? We have contacted the state Department of Transportation and the City & County of Honolulu and both say they did not do any counts in that area at that time. We also contacted several private firms, all of whom said they do not do traffic counts. So we are stumped and don't know who else to ask. We would really like to have the results of these counts since the last studies we have date from 2001 and 2006, and we'd like to know if traffic has changed since then. On April 9, we saw more of those counting tubes placed across Lunalilo Home Road by Koko Marina Shopping Center.

Answer: Thanks to the city, we were able to get you the answer fairly quickly.

The “;likely candidate”; doing the traffic counts is Traffic Data Solutions, Bill Brennan, spokesman for the Hannemann administration, told us.

The company is contracted by the state Department of Transportation to conduct traffic counts islandwide, including city roadways, he said.

The Transportation Department then confirmed it had indeed hired the mainland-based traffic consulting company to do the traffic counts along Lunalilo Home Road.

Spokeswoman Tammy Mori said she recalls speaking to a Hawaii Kai resident about the traffic counts, but only afterward learned that Traffic Data Solutions had done the data collecting on its behalf.

Lunalilo Home Road, between Kaumakani and Anapalau streets, wasn't on the original record of traffic counts “;because, unfortunately, the meter malfunctioned at that particular intersection and a recount is needed,”; she said.

Once the recount is taken at that intersection sometime in the future, Mori said the department can provide you with the data.

In the meantime, she was able to provide traffic count figures for the next closest location, at Lunalilo Home Road and Koamano Street.

In 2009, the average volume of traffic during the morning peak hours was 1,586 vehicles, compared with 1,713 during the afternoon peak hours. The average daily traffic volume at that intersection last year was 16,400 vehicles.

By comparison, in 2007 the average volume of traffic during the morning peak hours was 1,640 and 1,762 during the afternoon peak hours. The average daily traffic volume that year was 15,300.

The Transportation Department is required to submit traffic count data, for both state and county roads, to the Federal Highway Administration by June 15 of every year, Mori explained.

“;There are about 2,000 locations across the state where we take these counts,”; she said.

The data is used by federal, state and county agencies for future planning of roadways, prioritizing projects and funding, and measuring any changes in traffic volume and usage, she said.

MAHALO

To two good Samaritans who stopped to help me change a flat tire on Saturday, April 17, on Kamehameha Highway in Kaneohe. Even after I told them I called AAA, they willingly changed my tire, saving me 30 to 45 minutes out of my busy day, and wouldn't take any monetary compensation! In these tough times, it is reassuring to know that the aloha spirit is alive and well in Hawaii!—C. Kobayashi

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