Another lane is about to go on Ala Moana Boulevard, but not the part most Waikiki visitors drive or ride on. The closure is downtown, between Bishop and Richards streets, for construction of Skyline’s downtown station. We looked at it the way we look at any road news: does it touch the trips we actually take? For a Waikiki-and-Ala-Moana-Center stay, almost certainly not. For airport rides and downtown outings, maybe a little.
What happened
The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) posted an Ala Moana Boulevard lane closure notice on Oct. 14, 2026, and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser covered it the same day. Here is what HART’s notice says:
- When: starting the week of Oct. 19, 2026, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Star-Advertiser puts the start at Monday.
- Where: Ala Moana Boulevard between Bishop Street and Richards Street.
- What closes: one additional eastbound lane, at all times. HART calls these “additional lane closures,” so this adds to work already on that stretch.
- What stays open: a minimum of two lanes during daytime hours.
- At night: additional lanes will occasionally close in both directions to make room for construction.
- Turns: the eastbound left turn from Ala Moana Boulevard onto Halekauwila Street is closed at all times.
- On foot: because of heavy equipment, HART says motorists, pedestrians and nearby properties “should expect traffic and pedestrian detours.” Access to all properties will be maintained.
The notice gives no end date. It also says nothing about TheBus stops or bus detours.
For scale: HART’s own homepage measures project progress against a scope that runs to Ka’ākaukukui (Civic Center) Station and a March 2031 operational readiness date. Downtown construction is a long season, not a short one.
What it changes for a Waikiki stay
The useful question is direction. Eastbound on Ala Moana Boulevard is the direction that heads from downtown toward Kakaako, Ala Moana and Waikiki. So the always-closed lane sits on the way back to Waikiki, not on the way out.
| Your trip | Crosses the Bishop–Richards block? | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Waikiki to Ala Moana Center and back | No | Nothing changes |
| Waikiki to Kakaako and back | Only if you go as far as downtown | Most of the trip is east of the work zone |
| Waikiki to downtown (daytime) | Possibly, westbound | That side is not the one losing a lane by day |
| Downtown back to Waikiki | Yes, eastbound | One fewer lane, no left turn onto Halekauwila |
| Airport to Waikiki | Only if the driver takes the waterfront road | Depends on the route; H-1 skips it |
| Any of the above at night | Possibly | HART says lanes may close in both directions some nights |
The airport row needs one sentence of explanation. The waterfront road out of the airport side is Nimitz Highway, and it continues as Ala Moana Boulevard toward Waikiki — the same state Route 92, as Wikipedia’s summary of the route lays out. A driver coming in that way passes downtown; a driver who takes the H-1 freeway does not. We don’t know which one your driver will choose, and neither does HART’s notice.
What we would do — and what we wouldn’t
Our Waikiki days run between the room, a few blocks of errands, and Ala Moana Center on the Pink Line or the bus. None of that goes near Bishop Street. So for our normal routine, the honest call is: we would change nothing, and we would not go looking for alternatives to a problem we don’t have.
The one place we pay attention is arrival day. From the airport we take a rideshare or a taxi straight to the door, suitcase in the trunk, no transfers. If the driver comes in along the waterfront and hits the closed lane, that is a few slow minutes in a car with air conditioning, and we would let it be. We would not ask a driver to change routes on our behalf; they see the traffic, we don’t.
Departure day is where we would leave a little extra cushion. The daytime lane loss is on the side heading into Waikiki, not out of it, so a midday ride to the airport should not feel it. HART’s warning about occasional nighttime closures in both directions is the one we’d keep in mind for a late flight.
If you are planning a downtown or Chinatown afternoon from Waikiki, here is how we would think about it:
- Come back in daylight. The ride back to Waikiki is the one that runs through the narrowed eastbound stretch. By day HART keeps at least two lanes open; at night it says more lanes may close in both directions.
- If you drive, remember that the eastbound left onto Halekauwila Street is gone at all hours. Plan your turn a block early rather than discovering it at the light.
- If you walk around that block, expect pedestrian detours near the heavy equipment. HART says access to properties stays open, but the sidewalk you planned on may not be the one you get.
- If you ride TheBus, check your route before you go. HART’s notice is silent on buses, so we would not assume a stop is unaffected.
And if downtown was only a maybe on this trip, this is not the week we would talk ourselves into it. Ala Moana Center is still right where it was.
Before you plan around this
- Everything above is as of Oct. 15, 2026, from HART’s Oct. 14 notice and the Star-Advertiser’s report the same day. Lane counts and timing are HART’s numbers.
- No end date has been announced, and HART describes nighttime closures as occasional, not scheduled. We can’t tell you which nights.
- We have not been through this stretch under the new closure; it has not started yet. This is a read of the notice, not a field report.
- The current word is on HART’s traffic and news pages at honolulutransit.org. For bus detours, check TheBus directly.
If your trip looks like ours — Waikiki, Ala Moana Center, back to the room by mid-afternoon — you can read this one and file it away. If it involves downtown, give yourself the earlier half of the day.
