Hawaii pedestrian death rate among seniors leads the nation

Nineteen pedestrians died in Oahu vehicle accidents in 2015. They were fitness enthusiasts, seniors, homeless residents, military veterans, parents, spouses, friends and loved ones.

The total is an improvement from 2014 when 25 pedestrians were killed on Oahu. But Hawaii has been among the most perilous places for pedestrians of any age, as well as the most dangerous place in the nation for senior pedestrians, a Honolulu Star-Advertiser analysis of federal traffic fatality data from 2010-2014 show.

Hawaii led all states from 2010 to 2014 with a fatality rate of 4.3 per 100,000 people ages 65 and older, and 5.5 per 100,000 for people ages 75 and older, the analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data found. Nationally, the rate for pedestrian fatalities is 2.1 per 100,000 people ages 65 and over and 2.5 per 100,000 people ages 75 and older.

When it comes to pedestrians of all ages killed in accidents, the Aloha State ranked 15th, with a rate of 1.6 per 100,000 people, the analysis showed.

In 2015, Oahu pedestrian fatality victims ranged in age from 28 to 91; of the 18 victims identified, the median age was 58. One victim — a man in his 70s killed on Salt Lake Boulevard last January when he was hit by a four-door Suzuki — has yet to be identified.

The trend for seniors has persisted for nearly a decade here despite yearly pedestrian-safety campaigns and a 2009 statewide policy that called on local agencies to make their roads safer.

The fixes under that policy have started, but only incrementally. Advocacy groups such as Smart Growth America say such fixes are critical to prevent pedestrian deaths. Local safety advocates in Hawaii, meanwhile, say the situation will not get better until many more island roadways get makeovers — and get them soon.

“What is the point of educating people about crossing the street if you have a poorly designed street?” said Barbara Kim Stanton, state director for retiree advocacy group AARP. “It is a race. We have a rapidly aging population. We need to accelerate. … We need to do better.

“Without that critical redesign to make the community safer, all the education in the world is not going to be adequate in reducing pedestrian fatality rates,” she said.

The transportation director for Hawaii’s largest city agreed.

Since 2012, the city of Honolulu has spent at least $25 million on 32 so-called “complete streets” upgrades. Urban-planning buffs use that phrase to describe the added sidewalks, medians, roundabouts, bike lanes and other features to help make roads pedestrian-friendly. In 2012 the city passed a law that requires city planners to consider such features during regular work on existing roads. About a dozen of those projects were directly designed to help pedestrians, they say.

Still, the need for complete streets in Honolulu is “overwhelming,” city Department of Transportation Services Director Mike Formby said.

“What’s tough for us is to manage that need,” Formby said. “If we had the staff and the ability to manage the projects, I would love to have more money. But it is a commitment, and it does impact taxpayers. There’s a limit.”

The Honolulu City Council is weighing a bill that could slow the city’s complete streets progress to give businesses and residents more input into those projects first.

Bill 84, which passed its initial reading last month, would require that any complete streets changes to “major” roadways in town be included in the city’s capital budget before they are done. The proposal would at least partially undermine the city’s 2012 policy, which has its planners proceed with complete streets projects without waiting to see them in the annual budget.

Most of the 32 complete streets projects that have been completed never would have been done under the current version of Bill 84, Formby said.

Councilwoman Carol Fukunaga, who introduced Bill 84, said the proposal stems from the Council’s discussions earlier last year about whether the public had enough say in the controversial King Street protected bicycle lane.

The bill aims to give nearby businesses and residents most familiar with those roads more of a say — not to undermine making Honolulu more pedestrian-friendly, she said. The language will likely be fine-tuned as Bill 84 proceeds, Fukunaga added.

None of the other neighbor island counties reported having as strong a policy as Honolulu’s, but officials there say they are working to make their streets safer.

“It’s not just one project here and there; it’s how we review projects by looking into the full context of what’s going into our roads,” said Rowena Dagdag-Andaya, deputy director for Maui County’s public works department. “You have to think of people of all ages and whether or not they’re in wheelchairs or the mom pushing a stroller.”

The county passed a resolution in 2012 supporting pedestrian-friendly changes and Maui leaders are working to craft an official complete streets policy as part of county code, Dagdag-Andaya said.

Kauai recently received a more than $13 million federal grant to help make the heart of Lihue safer for pedestrians. Hawaii County officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Of the 19 pedestrians killed this year so far on Oahu, seven were determined by police to have been in a crosswalk. Several of those who weren’t in a crosswalk were killed when a vehicle veered off the road, hitting them on the sidewalk or the side of the road.

The victims included 10 women and nine men, and came from across the island, from the North Shore to Waianae to East Oahu.

Nobuo Yoshioka, the oldest victim, was a 91-year-old Army veteran who served during World War II. He died in early January after getting hit by an SUV in a Young Street crosswalk near his home near Makiki, according to police.

His nephew, Dean Yoshi­oka, described Yoshioka shortly after the accident as “kind and gentle.” He added that his uncle’s death was a “big loss” for the family, who loved the bachelor for his warmth and humor. “I expected him to live another 10 years,” Yoshioka said. “Physically, he was in good shape.”

Sarah Stanislawski, the year’s youngest victim, was a 28-year-old avid roller skater. She had just brought her skates back with her to Hawaii in January, following a visit to her hometown in Illinois, when she hit a moving BMW sedan while skating down a steep hill on Kikaha Street in Makakilo.

Shari Naomi Afuso, 49, whom relatives described as a hardworking courtroom manager and dedicated mother of two children who took up running later in life to stay in shape, died in February after she was hit by a pickup truck while jogging in Mililani.

“Her life was the kids,” said Afuso’s older brother, Miles Moriyama.

Pedestrian fatalities as a percentage of total fatal traffic accidents:

SENIORS IN PERIL

Hawaii ranks No. 1 in two death rate age categories and No. 15 in death rate for all ages:

Sources: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Honolulu Star-Advertiser reporting

Map+database on pedestrian deaths 2015 Oahu

(http://data.staradvertiser.com/pedeaths/)

Map+database on city complete streets upgrades