Pali traffic safety
session on Saturday
Nuuanu residents are urged
By Lori Tighe
to turn out to discuss ways to
cut down on accidents
Star-BulletinWhen Victoria Banning's car was struck and nearly totaled while she was trying to cross Pali Highway, her neighbor, Westley Chun, got involved.
The Banning family are third-generation residents of the Nuuanu area, and the Chun family moved in across the street in 1995.
"When my neighbor's wife was sideswiped, I became interested in doing something about the problem," Chun said.
"Our state has been in more of a reactive mode, when this whole strip is a problem."
He refers to what's called Church Alley, a 1.3-mile stretch of the Pali Highway from Waokanaka to Wyllie Street.
Four pedestrians have been killed in the area since 1994, according to police statistics. Numerous motorists also have been killed, and dozens of people have been injured over the years.
Chun, who has volunteered time to shepherd a safety plan, is calling on 5,000 residents of the Nuuanu/Pali area to meet this Saturday. They will discuss ideas to make Church Alley safer, and Department of Transportation and other volunteer engineers will be present.
The meeting will start at 9 a.m. in the Human Resources conference room at 550 S. King St. Free parking is available at the Civic Center.
"Waiting another eight to 10 years will cost eight to 10 lives," Chun said at last night's Nuuanu/Punchbowl Neighborhood Board meeting.
Residents have tried unsuccessfully for 10 years to get a traffic light added to the stretch.
Anna Hara, 90, was struck and killed while trying to cross the Pali on foot June 13.
The Pali safety plan spearheaded by Chun is being tied to the city's visioning process and will have as much as $2 million to work with, Chun said.
The effort will try to slow down the traffic in the Nuuanu area and may include landscaping the medians.
Warning signs, speed bumps, flashing yellow lights and public service announcements could also be used.
"We don't want just a bunch of signs and blinking lights," Chun said. "We want a holistic, coordinated plan along the entire stretch."
State Transportation Director Kazu Hayashida said he is accelerating the schedule to put up a stoplight at the Jack Lane, Pali Highway intersection due to pedestrians' difficulties in crossing the road.
Instead of May 2001, the stoplight will be up by end of 2000, he said.
Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland said the Legislature approved $66,000 to design the stoplight, but next year's session needs to approve the money to build it.
"I hope it does occur, it means a reshifting of priorities," she said. "This (Nuuanu/Pali area) is a big problem."
Honolulu Police Lt. Margo Sneed told the neighborhood board that police this week have started to collect more detailed statistics on traffic violations on the Pali.
"We're trying to bring speeders down," she said. "Maybe as the community decides what to put up, we could have PSAs (public service announcements) bringing back aloha to our streets."
