Question: If a bicycle is operated on a sidewalk, can the bicyclist ride in any direction, or must the bicyclist ride in the same direction as the vehicular traffic on their side of the sidewalk? I see so many bicyclists riding in both directions on the sidewalks, regardless of the flow of vehicular traffic. It is a major safety hazard that does not seem to be addressed on the city’s website on “Bicycle regulations and safety tips.” Another example: An automobile driver on Pensacola Street wants to make a right turn onto Kapiolani Boulevard. The driver looks right and left for nearby pedestrians. If that’s clear, the driver looks left for an opening in vehicular traffic. Initially out of view of the driver, it takes just a couple of seconds for a bicyclist riding on the mauka sidewalk to enter the crosswalk from the right, into the path of the car. The driver is expecting vehicular traffic from the left, not from the right.
Answer: There is no regulation regarding the direction a bicyclist can travel on sidewalks, said Chris Sayers, bicycle coordinator with the city Department of Transportation Services.
However, for the reasons you cite, he said it is recommended that bikers ride in the same direction as traffic.
It is a different matter if bikes are traveling along on a roadway.
“Bicycles are legally considered vehicles and as such must follow the rules for all vehicles, including direction of travel in lanes,” Sayers said.
He cited Section 291C-142 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, which basically states that bicyclists have all the rights and duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle.
On Oahu it is not legal to ride a bike on sidewalks in Waikiki or in any business district.
Question: I am seeing bicyclists on Pali Highway with increasing frequency. I realize that bikes are allowed on Kalanianaole Highway and Kamehameha Highway, but Pali Highway seems like another “animal” with the higher speed limit and narrow areas. Are bikes allowed on the Pali?
Answer: Yes, bicycles are allowed to be ridden on Pali Highway, said Chris Sayers, the city’s bicycle coordinator.
Question: I drive in six days of week from the west side and notice a lot of big rigs, buses and trucks on the freeway all scrambling to get in the left lane, which is supposed to be the fast lane. They are in the left, the middle and right lanes, so sometimes they’re packing the whole freeway. Is there a law that slow-moving vehicles, including buses and big rigs, have to stay in the right lane so traffic can move more smoothly?
Answer: There is no law that says commercial vehicles, whatever size, cannot be in “the fast lane,” said Sgt. Danton Nakama of the Honolulu Police Department’s Traffic Division.
“As long as the vehicle is able to travel at the minimum speed posted for that area, it should be OK,” he said.
Big vehicles are treated like any other vehicle. “If they cannot meet the minimum speed limit, they should go into the slow or far right lane. If the vehicle is going too slow and impeding the flow of traffic, the driver may be subject to other violations,” Nakama said.
Auwe
To a woman with sunglasses driving a convertible Mercedes in stop-and-go traffic, eastbound, at about
4 p.m. Friday, Jan. 13, on the Moanalua Freeway just past Red Hill. She appeared to be eating something that needed to be shelled and tossing the rubbish onto the road, showing no respect for our land. — Disgusted
Mahalo
To the team of six to seven young gentlemen students who came to my rescue when my car stalled in heavy traffic on King Street near Farrington High School on Thursday, Jan. 5. After steering me to safety, you were on your way so quickly that I did not have a chance to properly thank you for your help. You are my heroes, my knights in shining armor! — Debby McGraw
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