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PAIA - A new bike and pedestrian path between Paia and Baldwin Beach Park is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

But it could be quite a bit longer before the final section of the Paia Bike Path links the new segment with an older phase near Kaunoa Senior Center, allowing cyclists to ride easily from Stable Road to Paia town.

The latest segment of the path is 3,400 feet long and 12 feet wide, accommodating two-way bicycle traffic. While walkers and bike riders have already been seen using the path, work is still being finalized.

County Public Works Director Milton Arakawa said the county anticipates formally opening the path by December. Total construction cost is $365,000.

The original concept for the project was to link the two ends of the path with a segment extending from Baldwin Beach Park, running along the shoreline makai of the Maui Country Club and connecting with Nonohe Place in Spreckelsville, Arakawa said.

But that phase has been stalled due to residents' concerns about security and archaeological issues that would be raised if the path were to run along the sandy shoreline, he said.

Arakawa said the county needed to evaluate different alignments for the final phase and consult with residents who would be affected.

"The timing of the last segment depends on how successful we are in obtaining a general consensus," he said. "I do want to emphasize that we intend to work on this last segment of the bike path."

Once the final piece is in place, the complete bike path would run 3.5 miles from Paia to Kanaha Beach Park.