Traffic backs up on Honoapiilani Highway on Wednesday in Lahaina. The state Department of Transportation said Monday that it has received $3 million from the federal government that it plans to use to maintain safe access to West Maui via Honoapiilani Highway and the Lahaina Bypass. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photos
The Maui News
The Hawaii Department of Transportation will use $3 million in quick release emergency relief funding from the federal government on work to maintain safe access to West Maui via Honoapiilani Highway and the Lahaina Bypass, the department said Monday.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration announced the funding Monday to offset costs associated with traffic management and repairs to infrastructure as a result of the recent wildfire in Lahaina.
“The nation watched with broken hearts as wildfires took lives and livelihoods in Maui — and the nation will stand with Maui as it rebuilds,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a news release Monday. “This emergency funding will help residents get transportation networks back up and running with traffic signal replacements, erosion control, guardrails, and more — and we will continue work to protect communities against these increasingly frequent climate disasters.”
The state had requested the $3 million and said it will seek additional emergency relief funding in the future. The emergency relief program is intended to be used for the repair or reconstruction of federal aid highways which have suffered serious damage as a result of natural disasters or catastrophic failures from an external cause on a cost-share basis, according to a state DOT news release Monday.
A man crosses Honoapiilani Highway near the Lahaina Aquatic Center while trying to escape the flames consuming Lahaina on the evening of Aug. 8.
Work covered under the initial quick release emergency funding includes:
• Installation of 12-foot-high dust screen around Lahaina that will stretch roughly 30,000 feet (i.e., more than 5 miles). The dust fence will minimize contaminants and other material from blowing onto highway users on Honoapiilani Highway and the Lahaina Bypass.
• Deployment of battery-operated traffic signals.
• Erosion control.
• Sign installation.
• Guardrail installation.
• Deployment of barriers to aid in traffic control.
• Personnel costs for traffic control by law enforcement.
Honoapiilani Highway is currently open to all motorists from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Access is limited to West Maui residents, first responders and those working in West Maui from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.
“We’re grateful for the continued support from our partners at FHWA and the speedy response to our request for emergency funding,” Hawaii Department of Transportation Director Ed Sniffen said. “The funding will ensure that we can minimize risks from dust, erosion, and other factors to our emergency responders, residents, and others that need to go to West Maui.”
A man crosses Honoapiilani Highway near the Lahaina Aquatic Center while trying to escape the flames consuming Lahaina on the evening of Aug. 8. 
Traffic backs up on Honoapiilani Highway on Wednesday in Lahaina. The state Department of Transportation said Monday that it has received $3 million from the federal government that it plans to use to maintain safe access to West Maui via Honoapiilani Highway and the Lahaina Bypass. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photosToday's breaking news and more in your inbox
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