Question: Can a state ID card be used for transportation issues, such as boarding flights or any transportation requirements of the TSA, Customs or other out-of-state agencies or businesses? I hate taking and using my driver’s license because it’s just easier to lose it while showing it constantly at all the different checkpoints.

Answer: For now, your state ID card is accepted by the Transportation Security Administration as a valid government-issued card that can be used for identification purposes when flying, or for federal and out-of-state services, said Liane Moriyama, administrator of the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center.

The center oversees the state ID office, which is continuing to work toward complying with the federal Real ID Act by the extended deadline, May 11, set by the Department of Homeland Security, Moriyama said.

The act requires all states to issue driver’s licenses and state IDs that meet federal standards, with enhanced security features and proof of legal presence in the United States.

Hawaii is among a handful of states that have not yet complied with the Real ID Act.

As noted in the Sept. 28 Kokua Line, the state Department of Transportation still is working on administrative rules detailing what documents would be accepted as proof of legal presence when someone is applying for or renewing a driver’s license.

Asked if people with existing state ID cards will need to renew them to meet requirements of the Real ID Act, Moriyama said, "This is what we are trying to clarify" with Homeland Security.

"We are anticipating a phase-in period for those with existing cards," she said. Nothing is definite yet.

"As we get closer to May 2011, we hope to have more information," Moriyama said.

Question: What are the laws concerning mo-peds and those double-seated scooter cars on the highway? I see them in the traffic lane even though there is a bike lane available. They don’t go very fast so they tend to hold up traffic, plus those scooter cars look rather unsafe.

Answer: Those "scooter cars" are called three-wheeled mo-peds.

Mo-peds and motorcycles can have either two or three wheels, explained an official with the state Department of Transportation’s Motor Vehicle Safety Office.

Mo-ped travel is addressed in Sections 291C-195, 291C-196 and 291C-197 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes.

Three-wheeled mo-peds aren’t restricted to the far right lane or bike lane, if there is one, as are two-wheeled mopeds. But the three-wheelers are restricted to roads with posted speed limits of 35 mph or lower.

State law says a two-wheeled mo-ped traveling slower than the normal speed of traffic "shall ride as near to the right side of the roadway as practicable," except when turning, avoiding hazardous conditions, or when on a one-way road with two or more lanes. In that case, the mo-ped rider may ride as near to the left side of the roadway as practicable.

Mo-ped riders are required to travel in single file.

MAHALO

To the off-duty bus driver who helped me by pulling the Isuzu Trooper I was driving into the Pahoa Shell Station at 11:30 p.m. Sept. 13, then gave me a ride to work. I was stranded and he helped me get the car off the road and me to my job, relieving my stress. — Brenda/Kailua

Write to "Kokua Line" at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or e-mail kokualine@staradvertiser.com.