Nine of those fatalities involved homeless people. The bicyclist, 29, was not wearing a helmet and was taken to the hospital in critical condition.įor the first five months of this year, there have been 13 fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, 11 involving pedestrians, 13 involving motorcycles and scooters, three involving bicyclists, and one involving an ATV operator. The bicyclist was taken to the hospital in serious condition.Īnother hit-and-run occurred in mid-March, when an unknown motorist struck a bicyclist on North King Street in Kalihi. The motorist fled the scene, police said, possibly in a light-colored passenger van. On the evening of May 21, a motorist struck a 74-year-old bicyclist from behind as he was traveling north on Fort Weaver Road. In addition to the fatalities, there were several hit-and-run incidents involving vehicles and bicycles. "Anytime there's a death or serious injury, it sparks us to have a serious conversation." "HBL's perspective is the number should be zero," he said. That was part of the impetus for Bike Month in May, when the league held a bike helmet giveaway and smart cycling clinic in Manoa. The league's goal is to bring bicycle fatalities to zero through improved infrastructure, education, awareness and enforcement. "There's an upward trend now that people are rediscovering bikes, which happened during the pandemic, and people are dusting of their old bikes. "I think all in all, we're certainly seeing more people riding bikes," he said. The fatalities are all concerning, according to Travis Counsell of the Hawaii Bicyclist League, who sought more information on what happened in Hawaii Kai. The bicyclist was wearing a helmet, but was pronounced dead at the scene. In April, a 68-year-old man riding a bike was struck by a motorist near Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam at night. Police counted it as the 26th traffic fatality on Oahu this year, but said speed, drugs or alcohol did not appear to be contributing factors. Honolulu police said the "do not walk" sign was lit up at the time, and that the driver who struck the bicyclist was traveling eastbound at the time of the collision at about 8:10 p.m. A bicyclist in his 20s was struck by a vehicle while trying to cross the highway near the Keahole Street intersection in a marked crosswalk. The third bicycle-related fatality on Oahu occurred the night of May 12 on Kalanianaole Highway in Hawaii Kai. He was ejected onto the roadway, and succumbed to his injuries at the scene. Police said that morning, a 62-year-old man on an e-bike was struck by a Toyota Tacoma pickup while attempting to travel east across the Lahaina bypass near Honoapiilani Highway. On Tuesday, Maui Police Department reported another bicyclist fatality in Lahaina, which would bring that tally to four so far this year. This summer, officials said there will be a step-up in enforcement with sobriety checkpoints, additional saturation patrols, enforcement of speed limits, and seat belt checks.įor the first five months of this year, there also have been three bicycle-related fatalities, equal to the same time period last year. Motorcycle crashes made up about 30% of traffic-related fatalities, with the majority of riders not properly licensed. In 2022 speed contributed to 41% of crashes, while 40% of motor vehicle occupants in a fatal crash were not wearing a seat belt. In 2021 nearly half, or 46% of drivers killed in fatal crashes, tested positive for alcohol or drugs. Of these fatalities, DOT said, lead contributing factors were impairment by either drugs or alcohol, speeding and not wearing a seat belt. Even with that adjustment, it was a deadly year, higher still than in 2021, 20. Last year, DOT counted 116 traffic-related fatalities, adjusted downward by one after further analysis. Three of these fatal motorcycle crashes occurred within the same week during motorcycle safety month in May, due mostly to speeding, according to Honolulu police.ĭOT over Memorial Day weekend launched the "100 Safe Days of Summer" campaign in partnership with four county police departments, encouraging motorists to drive sober, at a safe speed, and wear seat belts. But for Oahu, the numbers increased to 27 fatalities compared with 23 at the same time last year, with double the number of motorcycle-related deaths - 12 compared with six at the same time last year. 1 to May 31, there were 41 traffic-related deaths, compared with 56 during the same time period in 2022, according to preliminary statistics from the state Department of Transportation. 8-May brought more traffic-related deaths, pushing the state's tally higher.įrom Jan.
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