Officials kick off Kōloa Road Bridge, Kīpū Bridge repair projects with blessing

Officials with Kaua‘i County and contractor Kaikor Construction Group kicked off two back-to-back Garden Isle bridge repair projects Wednesday during a blessing in Kōloa.

Repairs on Kōloa Road Bridge begin toward the end of next week, with work on Kīpū Bridge to start after their completion.

“It’s unique in Hawai‘i to place so much emphasis at the start of a project because we’re honoring everyone who came before and created these opportunities to connect people, communities and towns for today and tomorrow,” said Kaua‘i County Mayor Derek Kawakami during the blessing ceremony. “I want to thank our team and all the workers on this project, whose safety is the top priority, so they can return to work and continue providing for their families.”

The bridge projects share the same $1.9 million budget. Additional information about the Kīpū Bridge repair project will be provided at a later date.

The scope of the Kōloa Bridge project includes spalled concrete repairs to bridge abutments, piers and deck; an overlay with a new asphalt surface; and the addition of a guardrail near both ends of the bridge’s mauka barrier, the side toward the mountains; among other repairs.

Kōloa Road Bridge’s historic appearance will remain the same.

Kōloa Road, from Po‘ipū Road to Maluhia Road, will have shifting lane closures from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays from March 6 through Nov. 1 while repair work on Kōloa Bridge is underway.

Motorists are advised to use caution and allow extra time to reach their destinations if they must drive through the work area. It would be better for drivers to make arrangements to accommodate the road closures and use alternate routes.

Kōloa Bridge has a weight limit of 6 tons, so vehicles that exceed that limit should use an alternate route to avoid further damaging the bridge.

Construction and lane closure dates and times are subject to change depending on weather and other factors.

Anyone with questions about the repair projects can contact Stephen Baginski or Roger Mamuad with Kaikor Construction at 808-841-3110 or Aidan Smith with the county Engineering Division at 808-241-4883.