$22 M Secured for Honoapi‘ilani Highway Realignment from Ukumehame to Launiupoko

Hawaiʻi will receive $22 million in new federal funding from the US Department of Transportation to support a realignment of the Honoapiʻilani Highway in West Maui and protect it from sea level rise.

US Senator Brian Schatz worked with the DOT to secure the federal funds. He said the money will be used to realign 4.5 miles of the highway from Ukumehame to Launiupoko. This realignment will connect to the previously constructed Lahaina Bypass, addressing the second priority location on the statewide report for coastal highway protection.

The funding is in addition to the at least $2.8 billion Hawai‘i is set to receive from the new bipartisan infrastructure law to strengthen roads and bridges and make them more resilient to climate change.

“This new federal funding will keep Honoapiʻilani Highway safe and functional by responding to coastal erosion caused by climate change and help local families get where they need to go in West Maui,” said Senator Schatz, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing.

According to Sen. Schatz, HDOT will work closely with Maui County and the Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, which owns most of the land that the realignment will be constructed on.