David Y. Ige

• Listening to community input, then leading – As governor, I want to listen to people’s concerns, then make decisions in the best interest of the community. For instance, when one Maui community had a better plan than the state for dealing with highway damage and ocean erosion, we listened to their concerns and implemented it. And when commuters in Central O‘ahu asked that hours for travel in the shoulder lane be extended, the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) implemented that, too.

• More improvements to improve traffic congestion – HDOT made improvements to add a second lane for drivers from the H-1/H-2 merge to the Pearl Harbor area and created a Nanakuli contraflow to help drivers move through bottlenecks.  It also adjusted High Occupancy Vehicle lane hours throughout O‘ahu to match traffic patterns and boost efficiency.

• Modernizing airports and harbors – Major improvements by the HDOT harbors division have led to better handling of cargo and imported goods critical to Hawai‘i residents. The Ige administration’s leadership in encouraging more public-private partnerships has resulted in major improvements at Honolulu International Airport for visitors, businesses and local residents.

Read more in our January issue.