The state has tallied 60 traffic-related fatalities in the first eight months of this year, surpassing numbers from the same time in 2020 as an upward trend continues.

Of the 60 fatalities from Jan. 1 to Monday, 21 involved motor vehicle occupants; 16 involved pedestrians; 22 involved motorcycles, mopeds and scooters; and one involved a bicyclist, according to preliminary statistics from the state Department of Transportation.

The total is three more than the same time in 2020, when pandemic-related lockdowns were in place. Most of them, 34, occurred on Oahu, while none so far have occurred on Kauai.

Ed Sniffen, HDOT deputy director for highways, said more people are on the road compared with 2020, and more have been speeding.

“We’re seeing volumes coming back throughout most of our roads,” he said. “We’re still 3% to 5% lower than pre-pandemic levels on a couple routes and 10% to 12% lower on others, but in general we’re back. We’re also seeing morning and afternoon peaks reaching those pre-pandemic levels.”

Speeding has been a problem since the early days of the pandemic, in Hawaii as well as on the mainland, and has not subsided.

HDOT is working with police to strictly enforce speed limits, as well as installing raised crosswalks and roundabouts to ensure that drivers slow down.

On Oahu, raised crosswalks have been installed in the Nuuanu area of Pali Highway, along Farrington Highway in Waianae, near schools on Kalihi Street and on Fort Weaver Road in Ewa Beach.

Speed makes a huge difference in impact, according to Sniffen. Studies have shown when a driver is going 20 mph and strikes a pedestrian, 9 out of 10 pedestrians survive. When that same driver is going 40 mph and strikes a pedestrian, only 1 out of 10 survives.

At lower speeds a driver’s field of vision increases, and there is more time to react to potential hazards.

The number of traffic-­related fatalities this year surpassed those from 2020 as early as March. In June there were 44 for the first six months of this year, two more than the same time in 2020. The trend continued in July, when there were 52, or two more traffic fatalities, for roughly the first seven months of this year compared with the same time in 2020.

What stands out statistically is a doubling in motorcycle, moped and scooter accidents so far this year, at 22 compared with 11 during the same time in 2020.

“Nationally and especially in Hawaii,” said Sniffen, “when we see spikes in gas prices, generally, in those years we also see spikes in motorcycle fatalities.”

Many times, people turn to mopeds as a cheaper alternative to automobiles, but it is important that they be properly licensed. Out of the 22 motorcycle- and moped-related fatalities recorded so far this year, he said only two were properly licensed and wearing helmets.

Oahu’s 33rd traffic fatality was a 58-year-old man on a moped who on Aug. 21 accelerated into the back of a Toyota near Kewalo Basin for unknown reasons. Police said he was taken in stable condition to a hospital but later died from his injuries. He was not wearing a helmet.

“Nobody should assume they can operate a vehicle without proper training or experience,” he said. “Anyone riding a motorcycle or moped should be properly licensed and wear the proper safety equipment to keep themselves safe. They’re powerful, and if you don’t know how to operate one, it could put you in jeopardy pretty quickly.”

Drunken and drugged driving also remain primary contributing factors to traffic-related fatalities, he said.

The Honolulu Police Department will continue to set up impaired-driver checkpoints at unannounced times and locations throughout September and October as part of ongoing efforts to reduce traffic injuries and deaths.

With more personal responsibility and awareness, Sniffen hopes there will be no more than 60 traffic-related fatalities this year, particularly with the ongoing pandemic.

“This is even more important right now given the state of our medical facilities, given our hospitals are at over-capacity,” he said. “I would hope that we as residents, family members and friends alike understand we don’t want to add to this medical emergency at this time.”

UNSAFE TRAVEL

Traffic-related deaths in Hawaii from June 1 to Monday:

>> State: 21 motor vehicle occupants, 16 pedestrians, 22 motorcycles, mopeds and scooters, 1 bicyclist (60 total)

>> City and County of Honolulu: 8 motor vehicle occupants, 11 pedestrians, 14 motorcycles and scooters, 1 bicyclist (34 total)

>> Hawaii County: 9 motor vehicle occupants, 1 pedestrian, 5 motorcycles and scooters (15 total)

>> Maui County: 4 motor vehicle occupants, 4 pedestrians, 3 motorcycles and scooters (11 total)

>> Kauai County: 0

Source: HDOT