Ask the Mayor: How About A Roundabout for Maui Lani Parkway?

Mayor Alan Arakawa answers some of the most-asked questions submitted to his staff.

Mr. Mayor,

Q: I travel Maui Lani Parkway often to get to Wailuku and Waikapū. No matter what time I travel, once I get to the four-way stop at Maui Lani and Kamehameha Avenue, it takes a long time to reach the stop because traffic backs up and it takes a good while to continue traveling.

Are there plans for a roundabout at that intersection? If not, why?

A: My administration put in $2.8 million in our proposed Fiscal Year 2019 budget to the Maui County Council for a roundabout.

Our engineers conducted a feasibility study of a roundabout at the subject intersection and determined that there is enough right of way to accommodate a roundabout and that it will allow all modes of traffic to go through the intersection more efficiently than a traffic signal.

Nationwide studies also show that roundabouts have a reduced number of conflict points for vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists, as opposed to a traffic signal, and cost less to maintain in the long-term.

The Maui County Council’s Infrastructure and Environmental Management Committee is scheduled to further review the project later this year. The committee is expected to render a referral to the council’s Budget and Finance Committee to either release funding for the construction of the roundabout or a traffic signal.

Submit your own questions about County of Maui programs, services, operations or policies to Mayor Alan Arakawa at AskTheMayor@mauicounty.gov, (808) 270-7855 or mail them to 200 S. High St., 9th Floor, Wailuku, HI 96793.

Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the “Ask the Mayor” column.

This column originally appeared in publication on Feb. 13, 2013.