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Stronger laws needed
to protect pedestrians

The tragic story continues to repeat itself. A 73-year-old woman dies after being struck while crossing a street in Kalihi. Two teenage girls are seriously injured after being struck by a hit-and-run driver at a busy intersection in Honolulu. A 12-year-old boy is hospitalized after being hit by a car while walking to school in Waianae.

All of this took place within a recent one-week period. Each of these senseless accidents occurred while the pedestrians were in marked crosswalks.

During the past four years, 117 pedestrians died on our streets statewide. Twenty-three percent of these victims were in crosswalks at the time of the accidents.

The most vulnerable pedestrians are our elderly and children. A recent study commissioned by the state Department of Transportation found that 48 percent of seniors do not feel that our roads are pedestrian friendly, and only 62 percent feel safe crossing at crosswalks.

We need to remember that pedestrians are our grandparents, children, siblings and neighbors. Each of us becomes a pedestrian when we get out of our cars and step foot on the road. We should not have to feel like unprotected targets.

The responsibility to improve safety on our streets lies with all of us, both pedestrians and motorists. Pedestrians need to use caution when crossing the street, while motorists need to be alert and more accommodating to pedestrians.

So what can be done to help?

Policy makers, law enforcement officials and the community agree that a combination of educational initiatives and tougher traffic safety laws will reduce the number of accidents.

One example of educational outreach is the "Walk Wise Kupuna" program sponsored by the DOT, the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Transportation Services and the Honolulu Police Department. Plans call for the program to expand to the other counties this year.

Through presentations at senior centers and other approaches, our older residents are provided valuable safety tips. For example, they are reminded about the importance of wearing bright or light-colored clothing and using retro-reflective materials when walking after dark.

They are also urged to cross the street at corners or in crosswalks, look for vehicles before stepping down onto the pavement, establish eye contact with drivers of oncoming cars and be aware that vehicles might approach faster than anticipated.

For drivers, we cannot overstate the importance of staying focused and alert, obeying all traffic laws and speed limits, and never driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In addition, particular caution should be exercised at dawn and dusk when many traffic fatalities occur.

But education is only one of the strategies to keep our streets safe. We can also bolster our traffic safety laws and give police officers stronger tools to enforce the laws and prevent these tragic accidents.

Among the common-sense public safety measures being considered by the Legislature this year, like red-light running and excessive speeding initiatives, is a bill to help protect pedestrians in crosswalks.

Current law requires a driver to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk on the driver's half of the road. This vague language leaves too much guesswork for both the driver and pedestrian as to what is considered "the driver's half of the road."

The measure before the Legislature would eliminate this guesswork and instead require a driver to stop for a pedestrian as soon as he or she enters the crosswalk.

With the collaboration of the Lingle administration and the House and Senate Transportation Committees, these bills -- House Bill 438 and Senate Bill 80 -- are still alive and are headed to the Judiciary committees. We encourage the public to contact their legislators to let them know that you want stronger laws to protect pedestrians.

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