An evaluation of Big Island roads found them to be inadequate for any amount of traffic. Road maintenance had been minimal during the war years, and military traffic had taken its toll. East Hawai'i's devastated transportation network was high on the list of reconstruction priorities. Salvaged steel from previously dismantled bridges was used to widen railroad bridges on the Belt Highway to accommodate vehicle traffic. Today, five of those bridges are still in use, and the State Highways Division has one crew devoted exclusively to maintaining them.
Hakalau bridge is probably the most notable example.
About two-thirds of the Hamakua highway was rebuilt by 1952, but the entire Belt Highway was not completed until 1960. Acquisition and use of the railroad's assets certainly benefited those involved in the rebuilding process, as it is difficult to imagine the time and cost of constructing the new highway without them. Transportation in East Hawaii was never the same after April 1, 1946. Modern vehicles and highways may be more efficient, but without the railroad's evocative sights and sounds today's route is certainly far less exciting and picturesque than it once was. Born in the Islands, Ian Birnie has been the Hilo Harbormaster for the past 11 years.