Perils of the Pali

By Ken Sakamoto, Star-Bulletin
Sign holders Ed Onaga, who was a neighbor of
Anna S. "Hina" Hara, killed June 13 while crossing
Pali Highway, and Allyn Kurokawa, a resident
nearby on Henry Street, stand up for safety.

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Highway
crosswalks risky

Since 1958, speeding drivers
have endangered pedestrians along
a stretch of the thoroughfare in Nuuanu

By Leila Fujimori
Star-Bulletin

From the day the Pali opened as a four-lane highway from Laimi Road to Kailua in 1958, drivers have had problems with speeding.

"It's very difficult to keep your car at 35. Who plans these things out, anyway?" a Pali motorist complained on Oct. 14, 1958.

The Pali is hazardous in the stretch through Nuuanu, where the speed limit drops from 45 to 35 mph on a downhill for drivers going into town.

Pedestrians have had problems crossing the highway, particularly older residents who don't move as fast as they once did. On June 13, pedestrian Anna Hara, 90, was killed by a car at Pali and Niolopa Place.

Three other pedestrians have been killed on the Pali since 1994, according to police statistics.

Numerous motorists also have been killed, and dozens of pedestrians and motorists have been injured.

On Thursday, Sen. Rod Tam announced that the state Department of Transportation will expedite installation of a traffic signal at Pali and Jack Lane, near where Hara was killed.

When the Pali Highway was built, it cut through a residential neighborhood, said Tetsuo Harano, state Highways Division chief from 1969 to 1994.

"It was only a two-lane highway going across the Pali and gradually evolved into a six-lane highway," Harano said.

Paula Kurashige, a Nuuanu/Punchbowl Neighborhood Board member, said, "People forget it's a residential neighborhood with churches and schools with people of every age group."

"We're a community, but having people speeding through there like the Indianapolis 500 is not my idea of a community," she said.

First light

As traffic increased, there were more accidents. Nuuanu's residents clamored for traffic lights, and the first signal went up on June 24, 1975.

"On the surface, a traffic light may seem like a good idea," said Harano. But "some of the solutions being offered are not the best."

But police officer Richard Schaab advised: "Don't put crosswalks on highways without lights."

Officials say speeding is what makes the Nuuanu stretch of the Pali Highway dangerous.

"The Pali is not dangerous," said Marilyn Kali, spokeswoman for the Department of Transportation, which has jurisdiction over the Pali. "It's drivers that travel above the speed limit and fail to yield to pedestrians."

However, speed is not always a factor. Sgt. Harvey Hisatake, who was at the scene of the recent accident that killed Hara, said that "even at 35 mph, you can do a lot of damage."

"There were no skid marks," he said of the Hara accident. "That tells you something."

Possible solutions

Resident Joe Magaldi, also deputy director of the city Department of Transportation Services, recognized another problem.

"Midblock crosswalks without the traffic signals gives a false sense of security," said Magaldi, a neighborhood board member. "Pedestrians expect people are going to stop."

He suggested an overpass or a shuttle for those who want to cross the highway.

Some residents believe stepped-up enforcement would help. Just weeks before the June 13 fatality, police gave out about 200 warnings in a week and a half.

But Sgt. Randy Luna said stepped-up enforcement is a temporary solution.

"As long as we're there, it seems to help," Luna said. But when they're not, people lapse into complacency, he said.

The Pali is no different from other highways, Luna said, noting the high volume of traffic and pedestrians on Farrington Highway. "That's just the nature of highways," he said.

'Shared responsibility'

So what can be done? It starts with the driver and pedestrian.

Drivers need to start thinking about pedestrians and other drivers rather than themselves, recommended Leon James, a University of Hawaii professor who teaches traffic psychology.

James said that in the driver's mind, he curses at the pedestrian instead of realizing the person needs to cross the street.

"Think of that pedestrian like it's your grandmother or your daughter," he said.

And James reminds pedestrians: "You're not as visible as you think to the drivers. You can't rely on the crosswalks." He suggests carrying something that makes them more visible, such as a yellow umbrella or a jacket.

"You can't just rely on the driver. It's a shared responsibility."

Catherine Fung, 81-year-old president of the Laimi Seniors, said she recommends to seniors that they not disregard traffic in their haste to catch a bus.

"If you can't get the bus, miss it and get the next one," she said.

Neighborhood board member Kurashige lamented: "It's just too bad we have to lose people to point out to everybody to slow down."