After more than a year of construction the North-South road interchange is now officially open.
With the untying of the Maile lei, drivers got their first taste of the open road.
The new interchange is something many residents living on the Ewa plain have been waiting for the past 20 years.
"I know it's something many of you have been waiting for for a very very long time, to the point that you even doubted that this day would even come," said Brennon Morioka, State Transportation Department.
The interchange is expected to improve traffic flow in the area, connecting the H-1 freeway to Farrington highway between Kunia and Kapolei.
"We're excited about the fact that now it'll take maybe a couple of minutes to get on the freeway," said Lt. Governor Duke Aiona.
Oahu's second city has the fastest population growth rate on the island. And with national retailers moving in, the development of a Walt Disney resort and the new UH West Oahu campus, the interchange couldn't have come at a better time.
"What it really means is a better life for the people in the region, more time with family," said Governor Linda Lingle.
"What a better road does is make for a better community," said Morioka.
The 60-million dollar interchange is the second of three phases for the highly anticipated North-South road project. 80-percent of the costs were federally funded with the remaining 20-percent paid by state highway funds. The interchange was opened on-time and on budget.
The entire North-South road is expected to open by February of next year.
