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It’s going to be a long road ahead — another five months at least — before Pali Highway is fixed and reopened following last month’s rockslide. Read more

It’s going to be a long road ahead — another five months at least — before Pali Highway is fixed and reopened following last month’s rockslide.

State officials Thursday said repairs to the Honolulu-bound side of the highway are expected to be completed in August, weather permitting, meaning continued disruptions for Windward Oahu commuters well into the summer.

The state is planning two projects to reduce rockfall risk on the highway.

First, crews will install a mesh barrier supported by poles on the slope between Old Pali Road and Pali Highway to help catch falling debris, according to Ed Sniffen, deputy director of the state Highways Division. Once the barrier is installed by the end of April, crews will extend the Honolulu-bound tunnel about 80 feet to shield motorists from debris that makes it past the barrier.

“The significant concern is for the town-bound side,” said Sniffen. “When we look on the slope up above, there is nothing on the slope that affects the Kaneohe-bound side. … So we’re focusing specifically on the town-bound direction.”

In the meantime, access to the highway will remain the same as in previous weeks for the rest of March.

Two contra-flow lanes of Honolulu-bound traffic will be open from 5 to 9 a.m. weekdays, and all lanes of Kailua/Kaneohe-bound traffic will be open from 3 to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

While the state considered extending those hours, Sniffen said officials decided to keep the same hours so that work could get done quicker. The upside is that work repaving the town-bound side of Pali Highway, happening concurrently, is also expected to be completed in August, ahead of schedule.

Heavy rain led to rockfalls last month that closed the highway for days and prompted an emergency proclamation from the governor for the estimated $15 million in repairs.

State officials rushed to clear the debris and also had to remove a dangling chunk of concrete from Old Pali Road, which was also damaged significantly and posed an additional risk to the highway.

The Pali Lookout remains closed, and the state urges the public to avoid trails in the area, including the Likeke Falls hike between the lookout and the Koolau Golf Course.

The rockfalls also damaged electrical conduits that light the Pali Tunnels, which will remain off for at least another week.

Crews continue to work seven days a week, 12 hours a day, on removing debris and stabilizing the upper slope above the tunnels, according to Sniffen. Erosion control matting has been installed in the mudslide area, and the slope will be hydro-mulched so grass grows quickly.

While clearing debris from the upper slope, Sniffen said officials noticed a “stress crack” that could potentially result in another landslide, which makes these protection measures necessary for motorists’ future safety.

“I am not saying there’s going to be no more landslides in that area,” said Sniffen. “I’m pretty sure there will be.”

Windward-side commuters, meanwhile, lamented several more months of using alternative routes to town, such as Likelike and Kalanianaole highways and the H-3 freeway.

“It’s definitely a challenge,” said Danielle Scherman, a real estate agent in Kailua. “I’m making it work. Everybody has to make it work. Traffic to get from Kailua to Likelike is really crazy, even if you take the Aikahi way.”

Scherman needs to go to town several times a week and now prefers the Kalanianaole Highway route through Hawaii Kai, even though it is much longer. At the same time, on weekends she will not be going to town as often to dine or hang out, since the Pali is closed.

She would like it if the morning contra-flow lanes could be extended one more hour to 10 a.m. If the shortened hours mean the highway will get fixed sooner, though, she said she would be happy.

The Pali contra-flow does not flow the right way for all commuters.

Sierra Hartmann-Geiger, a retail associate at the Fighting Eel boutique in Kailua, travels in the opposite direction. Mornings, she travels from her home in Makiki to work in Kailua, so the Pali contra-flow is not an option.

What used to take 20 minutes on the Pali now takes anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour via Likelike Highway, she said, and traffic is always terrible. The alternative routes are also using up more gas, resulting in a more costly commute.

“Get it fixed, please,” she said, “with a cherry on top.”

LANE SCHEDULE

It will cost approximately $15 million to repair the highway, which usually sees an average of 50,000 trips daily. Below are the hours that some lanes will be open this month:

>> 5 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday: Two lanes of traffic going town-bound.

>> 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday: Lanes going Kailua/Kaneohe- bound.

COMING UP

>> April: Estimated date mesh barriers will be installed.

>> August: Estimated completion of repairs amd repaving of town-bound lanes.

>> Beyond August: Repaving of Kailua/Kaneohe-bound lanes.