City Council Bill 3 Could Mean More Traffic Like The ZipMobile Fiasco

Aloha, City and state planning looks 20 years ahead to 2035. Traffic will grow worse and worse every year until then. Wonder what you or your children will experience? This is a quick effort to compare last week’s ZipMobile traffic with what we will have in 2035 if the Ho‘opili project is approved.

We currently have 95,000 houses in Central, Leeward and Waianae. Their traffic fed three lanes between Waimalu and Waiawa in the ZipMobile traffic. Each lane served 31,666 homes.

In 2035, if Ho‘opili is built, we will have 165,000 houses in Central, Leeward and Waianae coast. In the morning, their traffic will squeeze into five lanes. Each lane will serve 33,000 homes. In the afternoon, their traffic will squeeze into six lanes. Each lane will serve 27,500 homes. This does not consider rail. But rail can only carry 8,700 an hour if packed full, which no one expects to be the case. When people count the time it takes to walk to the bus, take the bus to the station, ride the rail to town and take the bus/es to work, and add in their lack of mobility to shop, etc., they may opt to drive anyway.

In 2035, morning traffic will be a little worse than afternoon ZipMobile traffic was last week. Everyday afternoon traffic will be a little better.

Average 2035 traffic will be just about the same as that caused by the ZipMobile failure. How long did it take you to get home? Plan on that same time both going and coming.

Send a short note telling (councilmembers) to vote against Honolulu City Council Bill 3, which would put 12,000 cars from the huge Ho‘opili development onto the freeway.

Kioni Dudley, Ph.D.
Makakilo