Officials in Okinawa City say Chuo Park Avenue will become a two-way street by 2020 to improve the flow of traffic in the area. The change is also expected to help in the area re-vitalization efforts.

Chuo Park Avenue, formerly known as B.C. Street, was changed to one-way street 31 years ago. The area was renovated in 1985 when the both sides of the street were covered with roofs, and the street became the first strip mall on Okinawa. At the same time, the traffic on the street was changed to one way from Hwy 330 towards Korinza.

On the other hand, the change made entering the strip mall from the Korinza side harder, and also later has seen causing traffic jams prompting local shop owner to ask the city to change the street back into a two-way street.

According to the plan, the two way street would be 18 meters wide. The temporary parking spaces on the sides of the street will disappear, and are replaced with 1.5-meter-wide stop lanes on both sides for shoppers and delivery trucks and vans to pick up and drop off goods.

Also the South National Road Office has said it has a plan to widen Hwy 330 between Goya Intersection and Koza Bowling Center. To do that, shops on both sides of the road will be ordered to move out to make space to widen the road about 1.5 meters each side. The sidewalks will also become about 0.5 m wider.

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