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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0106.024 2004-2006 HOW MANY TRAFFIC DEATHS WILL TT TAKE? HAWAII COUNTY PLANNING COMMITTEE APRIL 12, 2005 ALOHA AND THANK YOU FOR TffiS OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS OUR CONCERNS ABOUT MORE DEVELOPMENT ALONG QUEEN KA'HAHUMANU HIGHWAY. I WOULD LII~ TO BEGIN WITH SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND END WITH A SUGGESTION. Tf HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE FII2ST RESPONSIBILITY OF GOVERNMENT TO PROTECT THE SAFETY AND HEALTH OF TTS CITIZENS. IN THE CASE OF STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (DOT) EVERYTHING ELSE, SUPER FERRIES, AIItPORT RUNWAY EXTENSIONS, BOTH OF WHICH ADD TO OUR TRAFFIC PROBLEMS ARE SECONDARY. HERE ON THE BIG ISLAND OUR POPULATION AND NUMBER OF DRIVERS LICENSES SINCE 1996 HAVE GONE UP 10% AS HAVE MII,ES TRAVELED ON THE BIG ISLAND. VISITORS TO OUR ISLAND HAVE GONE UP 20% FOR AN AVERAGE DAII.Y COUNT OF 22,277. SINCE 1996 DUE TO GRANT FUNDING FROM THE DOT SAFE COMMUNITY GRANTS THE LOCAL POLICE HAVE INCREASED THEIIt DUI AND SPEEDING ENFORCEMENT BY WORKING OVERTIME. THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS EFFORTS BEGAN TO PAY OFF FROM 1999 TO 2002 WITH FEWER FATALITIES YER 10,000 RESIDENTS BUT SINCE THEN THE FATALITIES RATE IN 2003 AND 2004 BEGAN TO INCREASE . THERE IS A LIMTf TO WHAT OUR COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT'S ENFORCEMENT CAN ACCOMPLISH. THEIIt FIItST RESPONSIBII.TI'Y IS STOPPING CRU1~ AND THERE IS ONLY SO MUCH THEY CAN DO ABOUT TRAFFIC SAFETY ON OVERTIME. IN ADDITION THE COUNTY HAS NO PLANS FOR INCREASING OUR POLICE FORCE, SO WE MUST MOVE TO OTHER ALTERNATIVES TO REDUCE THE FATALITIES ON OUR ROADS. THE FATALITY FIGURES SEEN IN THE LOCAL NEWSPAPERS AND ISSUED BY THE COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT ARE NOT ACCURATE. THEY DO NOT COUNT TRAFFIC FATALITIES ON PRIVATE SUBDMSION ROADS AND THEY DO NOT COUNT FATALITIES OF PERSONS WHO DIED LATER IN THE HOSPITAL IN OAHU OR THE MAINLAND. FOR THE MOST PART THESE LATER DEATHS ARE TOURISTS .ACCORDING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH IN 2002 THE COUNTY UNDER COUNTED TRAFFIC DEATHS BY 229'0.ONLY THE STATE DOT HAS THE COMPLETE NUMBERS OF TRAFFIC FATALITIES WITH THE CONTRIBUTING CAUSES SUCH AS ALCOHOL, DRUGS, UNSAFE ROADS, LACK OF SEAT BELT USE, ETC. HOWEVER, IF WE USE THE COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT'S FATALITY STATISTICS, WffiCH, MIND YOU, ARE NOT A FULL COUNT, THERE WERE 41 DEATHS IN 2004, 49% OF THESE DEATHS WERE IN CARS THAT CROSSED THE CENTER LINE. OF THOSE HALF INVOLVED SPEEDING BUT HALF OF THOSE WERE USING THEIIt SEAT BELTS. WE DO NOT KNOW IF ALCOHOL AND DRUGS WERE INVOLVED BECAUSE THE TOXICOLOGY TESTS CAN TAKE MONTHS TO DETERMINE. BUT WE DO KNOW FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH WHO USES DEATH CERTIFICATES THAT THE FATALITIES ON THE BIG ISLAND IN 2003 WERE THREE AND HALF TIMES GREATER THAN THE FATALITIES ON OAHU PER 10,000 POPULATION AND THE RATIO WENT UP IN 2004 AND WILL PROBABLY CONTINUE RISING IN 2005. Comm. No.~- Ref. To: erese.~.d G Ref. Date WHAT IS CLEAR LS THAT THE CAUSES OF THESE FATALITIES ARE MULTIPLE. THERE 1S NO SINGLE CAUSE, IT IS A COMBINATION OF INATTENTIVE DRIVERS, DRIVERS UNDER THE INFLUENCE AND THE OVER CAPACITY AND UNSAFE CONDITION OF OUR HIGHWAYS. ONLY THE DOT HAS ALL THE DATA NECESSARY TO RECOMMEND CHANGES IN THE HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENTS PRIORITIES. YET BECAUSE OF A BELIEF THAT THE DATA CAN BE USED TO SUE THE STATE THEY KEEP THE DATA AND ITS ANALYSIS FROM THE PUBLIC. IF THE DOT IS SINCERE ABOUT THE FEAR OF LAW SUTTS THERE CAN BE NO LEGITIMATE REASONS IN A DEMOCRACY WHY THE DATA AND TTS ANALYSIS ARE NOT MADE AVAILABLE TO BIG ISLAND ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES AND OUR COUNTY COUNCIL. OUR PROBLEM IS NOT A CASE OF THE STATE HAVING TOO LITTLE MONEY TO IMPROVE OUR HIGHWAYS IT IS A MATTER OF POLITICAL PRIORITIE5. RECENTLY THERE WAS A BILL TO PUT CAMERAS ON OAHU INTERSECTIONS TO CATCH CARS RUNNING A RED LIGHT. HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE KILLED LAST YEAR ON OAHU BECAUSE SOMEONE RAN THROUGH A RIGHT LIGHT? AS MANY AS WERE KII.LED ON THE BIG ISLAND? WAS THE RATE PER 10,000 RESIDENTS IN OAHU EQUAL TO THE RATE OF DEATHS ON THE BIG ISLAND PER 10,000 RESIDENTS? THEN THERE IS THE PROPOSED INCREASE IN THE EXCISE TAX FOR TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS. WILL THE MONEY GOING TO THE OUTER ISLANDS BE ALLOCATED BY NEED SUCH AS THE NUMBER OF FATALITIES PER 10,000 RESIDENTS OR BY POLITICAL INFLUENCE? SINCE THE STATE REFUSES TO LIVE UP TO ITS RESPONSIBII.ITY WHAT CAN THE COUNCIL DO? I WOULD SUGGEST THAT THIS COMMITTEE OBTAIN THE ffiGHWAY CAPACITY MANUAL 2000. THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT OR THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT SHOULD HAVE A COPY IF NOT YOU CAN OBTAIN ONE BY CONTACTING THE TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD AT (202) 3343213. THE MANUAL RATES ffiGHWAYS, INCLUDING TWO LANE ffiGHWAYS, AS TO THEIII SAFE CAPACITY. IF QUEEN K. EXCEEDS A SAFE CAPACITY AND I THINK IT WII..L THEN PASS AN ORDINANCE THAT PROHHiTTS ALL FURTHER DEVELOPMENT THAT REQUIIUES ACCESS OR EXIT ON QUEEN K. UNTIL TT MEETS SAFE CAPACITY STANDARDS. TffiS WAY YOU WII.I, BE UPHOLDING THE FIRST RESPONSIBII.ITY OF GOVERNMENT WHICH IS PUBLIC SAFETY AND YOU CANNOT BE ACCUSED OF VIOLATING ANY ONE'S PROPERTY RIGHTS. Hawau County Motor Vehicle Related Fatalities and Injuries: A CALL TO ACTION Facts: • Hawaii Counttyy has an average motor vehicle relate rate per age ad'usted 100,000/population, from 199 - 2000, which is three times higher than the City and County , of Honolulu and two times higher than Maui ~ ' ~ and Kauai counties. , ' +:~"t ' ~ a t • Hawaii County motor vehicle related fatality rates for 2004 and 2002 were also similarly high compared to other counties. Hawaii County motor vehicle related deaths for the frst cuarter of 2004 are nearly two times higherhigher than the quarter or 2003 a ....a.~. »....~~en.,. a..~~..M 9e•u: NuN Xwtll MMa Va~kM fYYXy 0.a•stli RGcI. EW3, by NJ'•w O in Xw•, M.O. MP X. The "injury pyramid" for Hawaii FBCts: o-.~ti • Hawaii County has the highest rate of ao• , injury causing motor vehicle crashes in Iq;~ the State when calculated both by nm.~ y • population and by vehicle miles traveled. an.ao. ~ i_.~ O~ Source: DOH Ina Prevention Drvison Dan Galanis, Ph.D. Average Mator vehicle Crash lnlury Rats per PO0MlatPon ewn9a MUar MahkMCm 199ary R.ra WrJbOkkNtlaa.IIanfatl. 1998 2002 1002 nn xa ~ " M~, ~ ..I m.Y ~ .u.a 4-' 4~' .4. 43 ~ ~ m ~ ~ . ,x,r,., i $,Y x i i b~ ~ ~ cnn ra+n n..r aww~,.• Sava' or mnem ar X••nn, io vau<moa o~heen ar.•••ww nYaa. on.ao.x?X.Mm-iMw P~NnHm oM.rn North Hawaii Outcomes Project March 5, 2005 Traffic Safety Summit 2 Figure la. Avery a annual occu ant fatality rates /IQ000 residents), coon and time eriod. 2.0 1.9 1-5 1.3 1.2 1 1.0 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.0 Hawaii Hono, Kauai Maui state Hawaii Hono. Kauai Maui state 1996-1999 2000-2003 Figure Ib. Average annual occupant fatality rates (/100 million vehicle miles), by county and time rind. 2.5 2.3 2.0 ].5 1.5 1.1 1.2 1.0 1 0.9 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.0 Hawaii Hono. Kauai Maui state Hawaii Hono. Kauai Maui state 1996-1999 2000-2003 Figure 2. Annual occupant fatality rates for Hawaii and Honolulu counties, by two methods, 199ti- 2003.