Question: While turning left on King Street into the driveway of a business, I paid extra special attention to watching my rearview mirror for any bicyclists in the new dedicated bike lane. Imagine my horror as I proceeded to see a bicyclist come barreling at me in the dark from the opposite direction. Believing that the one-way status of King Street applied to everyone, I wasn’t looking toward Diamond Head at all. If the bike lane is for two-way bike traffic, the city needs to heavily publicize this before there is a tragic accident.
Answer: This is a situation in which both motorists and bicyclists should not take anything for granted.
Although the King Street Cycle Track is, for now, supposed to be one-way, authorities are taking a benign attitude toward bicyclists using it to travel in the opposite direction.
"Our focus is on educating bicyclists and motorists (about the new bikeway) at this time, and we haven’t had major problems so far," said Michelle Yu, spokeswoman for the Honolulu Police Department.
At last check she said no citations had been issued to bikers.
Meanwhile the city Department of Transportation Services said that although the new protected bike lane is striped one-way, it was designed for two-way use.
It will be striped for two-way traffic as soon as the ordered bicycle traffic lights arrive and are installed in March, said DTS Director Michael Formby.
Just as bicyclists ride on sidewalks and "sometimes oppose traffic on the street, some bicyclists are using the bike lane contrary to the one-way striping," he said.
Formby said DTS has and will continue to encourage bicyclists to use Young Street or Beretania Street for westbound travel until the King Street bike lane is striped for two-way traffic.
Question: Is anyone keeping track of how many accidents happen because of the new King Street bike lane? Traffic was stopped on Pensacola Street by Kaiser Medical Center for a red light. When the light turned green, five lanes of traffic started to cross King when this bicyclist heading Ewa on King came barreling across Pensacola. To try to avoid a collision, she landed on the hood of my car. Fortunately, no one was hurt. A police officer saw the whole thing and told me it wasn’t my fault. But the bicyclist said there are no lights facing Diamond Head so she didn’t know the lights changed. Will traffic signals for Ewa-bound traffic be installed?
Answer: They are being procured and expected to be installed in March.
"Until then the bike lane has been striped for one-way use only, and (the Department of Transportation Services) continues to alert bicyclists that Young Street and Beretania should be used for westbound trips," said DTS Director Michael Formby.
He noted that the new protected bike lane is a pilot project and DTS is continuing to compile statistics associated with use of that lane, including ridership counts, accidents and complaints.
Mahalo
To a kind lady. In November at the Pearl City Hongwanji Mission Bazaar, I was in line to pay for sushi. A nice lady called me and told me to go in front of her, then said she would pay for the sushi. I told her thanks, but I would pay for my own lunch. She insisted, so I
didn’t argue and told her, "Thank you, you are an angel." She said it was just her good deed of the day. May she be blessed for the kindness she showed this 89-year-old. Arigato. — Jerry K.
Mahalo
To S. Chambers. On Thanksgiving Eve, while on my way to pick up my family’s turkey dinner at Zippy’s Wahiawa, I had a flat tire. I called my husband for assistance, but while waiting for him, this young man came and offered his help. He fixed my tire in minutes before my husband arrived. I offered a monetary gift, but he refused and told me to have a nice Thanksgiving Day! I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to him for helping. May he have millions of good fortune in the future. — A Grateful Senior
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