By George F. Lee, Star-Bulletin
A new law banning youngsters from riding in the back
of pickup trucks goes into effect Jan. 1. Passenger Steven
Keliiholokai says he would be opposed to a total
ban on truck-bed riders.

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Kids banned
from truck beds
as of Jan. 1

Police are pushing to ban all
passengers from riding
in pickup truck beds

By Craig Gima
Star-Bulletin

Even as police alert people to a new Jan. 1 law banning kids from the back of pickup trucks, traffic safety advocates are pushing for a total ban and other measures involving children in vehicles.

State Rep. Barbara Marumoto (R-Waialae Iki) said when the Legislature convenes next month, she will join Honolulu police in pushing for a total ban on people riding in pickup truck beds, a law she's been seeking for 12 years.

"The new law is a first step," said Marumoto. "The law is evolutionary rather than revolutionary."

Honolulu police will also be seeking law changes to allow additional penalties for drunken drivers caught with children riding in vehicles, and to raise the age requirement from 3 to 4 for children in car seats.

At a press conference yesterday, Police Maj. Gary Dias warned that starting Jan. 1, drivers of pickup trucks will receive a $50 ticket if they are caught carrying children age 12 or younger in the cargo bed.

"We are going to be issuing citations," Dias said.

"This is so serious. This is not a warning type of offense."

Because police see children riding in pickup beds every day, there's no need to make an extra effort to find violators, he said.

"Riding in the bed of a truck or cargo area of a truck is just plain dangerous," Dias said.

Police statistics show that in the last seven years, 20 people riding in the beds of pickup trucks died in collisions. Six of the deaths involved teen-agers, but only two were children under 12.

The only exemptions to the new law involve an emergency situation, or children riding in a parade or exhibition authorized by law.

Kids riding in trucks with camper shells will still be in violation of the law, Dias noted.

"Camper shells can cause additional injuries due to the fact that (they) can become separated from the bed."

Police may also issue multiple tickets if more than one child under 12 is in the bed of the truck.

At Ala Moana Beach Park yesterday, surfers Randall Perreira and Steven Keliiholokai loaded their boards into the bed of fellow surfer Allan Rust's red pickup.

Perreira, who also owns a pickup, favored a total ban.

"Having a truck is for hauling stuff, not people," he said.

"A couple of years ago I had friends who were riding in an El Camino pickup. One girl went through the back window of the cab and the other flew out of the bed," Perreira said. "They all survived but they got pretty messed up."

But Rust said while he likes the law banning kids, he's not in favor of a total ban.

"I'm just too used to sitting in the back of the truck," he said.

Keliiholokai, riding in the truck bed with the surfboards, also is opposed to a total ban even though a friend had died in a pickup truck accident.

"To me once you get a pickup you take a risk like other vehicles, like motorcycles," he said.

Opposition to a ban on people in the beds of pickup trucks has come from lawmakers in rural districts and on neighbor islands who argued pickup trucks serve a variety of purposes for families there.

Marumoto admitted passing a total ban will be "an uphill fight."