The Central Federal Lands Highway Division and Hawaii Department ofTransportation, among others, should be commended for their efforts to
improve Saddle Road. The recently opened segment between m.m 41 and m.m
51.27, along with the previous phases (m.m 11 and m.m 41), is a huge
improvement over the old Saddle Road.
The latter roadway was riddled with potholes and serious design
deficiencies, which caused an immeasurable number of accidents and
fatalities. In addition, the realignment and reconstruction of
Saddle Road to a full fledged highway has resulted in a huge time
savings in commute times.
I was able to drive between m.m six (top of Puainako Extension) and m.m
51.27 on the Kona side in 56 minutes. My overall time savings was about
26 minutes, so I can’t wait until the last east side Saddle Road phase
is complete. It will reduce commute times even more.
I know there is challenges acquiring the right of way for the final
SR200(3) phase. However, I’m confident these challenges will be
overcome. It is imperative that Senator Dan Inouye’s legacy project is
finished.
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