Editorial: Safety first for crosswalks

Who should decide where the city puts marked crosswalks — or, more to the point, where it doesn’t put them?

The City Council is considering Bill 61, which would require the city administration to notify the public and consider comments before removing or relocating marked crosswalks on Oahu.

It’s a nod to transparency and citizen empowerment. And the city should expand on the public notices it already provides. Sometimes people don’t get the message, and continue to cross where a crosswalk has been blacked out. But allowing public opinion to dictate the location of crosswalks doesn’t make much sense.

Crosswalks are inherently dangerous places, especially if there’s no traffic signal attached. Their locations should be based on hard traffic data, with public safety — not convenience — the paramount concern. Traffic conditions on our roadways evolve constantly, and the city must act in a timely way to address them.

As of Tuesday night, the number of pedestrian accidents this year reached 28 — 19 on Oahu. Last year at this time the total was four. Those numbers are alarming, and Honolulu police responded with plans to increase traffic enforcement in an effort to halt the trend.

Public input about public streets can be helpful. It may be more beneficial to preserve a well-used crosswalk by enhancing other safety features around it. And there are any number of non-safety-related concerns about which the city should solicit comment.

When it comes to protecting pedestrians on our crowded streets, however, action must take priority over discussion.