There were 90 traffic fatalities reported statewide in roughly the first nine months of this year, surpassing 66 from the same time frame in 2021, according to the state Department of Transportation’s preliminary statistics.
That’s a 36% jump, with increases in fatalities across nearly all categories as Hawaii’s roadway traffic appears to be returning to pre-pandemic levels — with students back to in-person classes at universities and schools, and the return of tourists to the islands.
Forty of the traffic fatalities involved motor vehicle occupants; 23 involved motorcycles, mopeds or scooters; 21 involved pedestrians; and six involved bicyclists, according to DOT statistics from Jan. 1 to Sept. 28.
The count of traffic deaths in the first nine months of this year is nearly double the number, 21, that occurred during the same period of 2021.
The number of pedestrian deaths also increased to 21 — up from 16 during the same period of 2021. And the number of bicyclist fatalities increased to six, compared with just two at the same time in 2021.
This continues an upward trend that began in the first quarter of the year and continued at the halfway mark. In all of 2021 the state recorded 94 traffic deaths.
Only moped-, scooter- and motorcycle-related fatalities dropped slightly, to 23 this year, compared with 26 during the same period in 2021. There has, however, recently been a spate of critical injuries resulting from collisions involving motorcycles.
Tragically, nearly half of the pedestrian deaths, 10 out of 21, involved homeless victims. The majority of bicyclist deaths, four out of six, involved homeless victims.
“We are, of course, concerned to see the disproportionate number of homeless individuals who are injured or killed in car-pedestrian accidents,” said Jill Wright, spokeswoman for The Institute for Human Services, a nonprofit serving the homeless. “We are especially concerned with people who set up residence on medians or sidewalks at busy intersections or next to the freeway. Living in these unsafe conditions means having to cross busy streets on foot or bike to get ‘home.’ No matter the time of day, there is traffic. There is risk.”
Wright said outreach workers try to encourage people to go to shelters or move to safer environments.
Some neighborhoods of particular concern include Iwilei, Kalihi and Sand Island, where homeless people may be walking or biking to get to and from services in areas that are dark at night and not particularly pedestrian- or bicycle-friendly.
CJ Johnson, lead of Hawaii Safe Routes to School, said oftentimes it is the built environment that is challenging to the most vulnerable, including the homeless, seniors or disabled in wheelchairs.
On Nimitz Highway, for instance, he noticed while waiting at a bus stop that pylon blocks made it impossible for someone to push a shopping cart on the sidewalk — or for someone in a wheelchair to pass by. Thus, the reason why they might be in the street instead.
He is concerned that the narrative will place the blame for fatalities on the homeless when the inventory of safe and walkable streets needs to be addressed. “A lot of times the built environment is not hospitable to someone who doesn’t have a choice but to keep all their belongings with them in a shopping cart,” Johnson said.
The focus, Johnson said, needs to be on traffic safety features that slow down cars and make drivers pay more attention, or the placement of crosswalks near bus stops that make crossing the street safer for everyone.
The DOT is installing raised crosswalks near schools around Oahu to improve pedestrian safety, including, most recently, in parts of Kailua and Kaneohe. Raised crosswalks are in place on Farrington and Pali highways.
Another factor that may be contributing to the increase in fatalities at the nine-month mark is the presence of large pickup trucks and other vehicle models, Johnson said. When hit by a smaller sedan, Johnson said, a pedestrian tends to roll up or to the side, but a heavier pickup is going to knock one down and run over them.
Additionally, there was a slight uptick in registered passenger vehicles in Hawaii to 1,059,943 in September, according to the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism — 5,775 more than the same month of 2021.
TRAFFIC-RELATED DEATHS IN HAWAII
Jan. 1 to Sept. 28
>> State (90 total): 40 motor vehicle occupants, 23 motorcycle/moped/scooter operators, 21 pedestrians, 6 bicyclists
>> City and County of Honolulu (38 total): 14 motor vehicle occupants, 10 pedestrians, 10 motorcycle/scooter operators, 4 bicyclists
>> Hawaii County (29 total): 16 motor vehicle occupants, 7 motorcycle operators, 5 pedestrians, 1 bicyclist
>> Maui County (15 total): 5 motor vehicle occupants, 5 motorcycle/scooter operators, 4 pedestrians, 1 bicyclist
>> Kauai County (8 total): 5 motor vehicle occupants, 2 pedestrians, 1 scooter operator
Source: State Department of Transportation
