REP PWMTC 028 2020/11/17 2018-2020

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REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS AND MASS TRANSIT DATE: November 17, 2020 Re: Comm. No. 1154/Res. No. 779-20 PLACE: Council Chambers Hilo, Hawai`i TIME: 11:16 a.m. Council Chair and Members Hawai`i County Council Hilo, Hawai`i 96720 Your Committee on Public Works and Mass Transit, to which was referred Resolution No. 779-20, reports as follows: Resolution No. 779-20, introduced by Committee Chair Susan L. K. Lee Loy, via Communication No. 1154 dated October 27, 2020, adopts the County of Hawaii Street Design Manual to guide the implementation of Complete Streets and multimodal design principles for Hawai`i County roadway projects. Attached as Exhibit A to Resolution No. 779-20,the County of Hawai`i Street Design Manual and its appendices provide a toolkit for achieving the goal of safe, healthy, and equitable mobility for all, said senior planner and transportation engineer Natasha Soriano. She walked your Committee through a PowerPoint presentation, a copy of which is filed with Communication No. 1154.1. During her presentation, Ms. Soriano said Hawai`i County has led the State in traffic deaths per capita. However,recent policy shifts by the Council including the adoption of Vision Zero helps to support safety and prioritizing vulnerable users. She gave examples of how conversions to Complete Streets could work in Kailua-Kona, Waimea, and Hilo. The design manual establishes a framework to assign priorities to streets depending on their capacity and functions, with language pointing toward multimodal transportation as a goal. Ms. Soriano recounted her progress on the project over the last year and a half with consultant SSFM International, the Department of Public Works (DPW), and the Hawai`i Department of Transportation. Complete Streets can be used for new road construction or renovation of existing roads. End user workshops, and then code and rule changes are anticipated in 2021 following adoption of this resolution. Committee Member Tim Richards complimented Ms. Soriano for the work done on the project. He acknowledged his past criticism of the concept of Complete Streets but appreciated the work that has gone in to the design manual. We design the roads to reduce driving speeds and make them more inviting to non-motorized modes of transportation, he said. Mr. Richards asked about a plan to educate the community. Ms. Soriano said the end user workshops would be part of the education piece, but that would be for developers and consultants, rather than for general public consumption. Going into more modal planning would be another opportunity to get into the public and provide more education about it, while also garnering information about what the community's transportation needs are. PWMTC Report No.: 28