Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!
Question: Will the DMV open longer because the licenses are expiring?
Answer: You are referring to the fact that Gov. David Ige is no longer extending expiration dates for Hawaii driver’s licenses and state identification cards by emergency proclamation. Yes, extended renewal hours are available at some facilities, but they have ended at others, according to Honolulu County’s Department of Customer Services. Here are the details, from honolulu.gov/csd, which was updated Monday.
>> The Kapalama and Kapolei driver licensing centers will be open the next three Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., for all services except road tests. The dates are Dec. 4, 11 and 18. Closed on Christmas.
>> The Kapalama, Kapolei, Koolau and Waianae driver licensing centers open an hour early, at 7 a.m., and stay open an hour later, until 5 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, for people who need to renew a driver’s license, learner’s permit or state ID. Customers who make appointments via the AlohaQ.org reservation system will get priority.
>> Four of Oahu’s nine satellite city halls renew Hawaii driver’s licenses and state IDs. They are the Downtown, Hawaii Kai, Pearlridge and Windward City facilities. All but Pearlridge are open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Pearlridge is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Saturday hours have ended.
Q: I know the Honolulu Marathon lets people finish even if they have to walk. Can I bring a walking stick, or have it handed to me on the route if I need it?
A: No. “All participants must self-propel themselves without assistance. No assistance conveyances and unauthorized vehicles including bicycles, baby carriages, all forms of skates, support walkers, walking sticks, poles and canes, etc. will be allowed on the course on race day,” the Honolulu Marathon says on its website, honolulu marathon.org. All those are distinct from racing wheelchairs, which are allowed, the website says.
You are correct that the marathon has no cutoff time, allowing slower entrants to officially finish the race even if they have to walk some of the way.
The marathon is scheduled for Dec. 12.
Q: Are people on private jets subject to Safe Travels? I mean like celebrities flying in from L.A.?
A: “Most definitely yes. All private planes, as well as all cargo flights, must register their arrivals with airports. My team is notified of these arrivals and makes arrangements to have a screening team sent to meet the craft to process. All on board must be screened and cleared, or quarantined, including the flight crew. Examples of this process are for small private planes (like celebrities), larger chartered flights (like sport teams), FedEx arrivals, medical flights, etc.,” Sheri Kajiwara, who administers Hawaii’s Safe Travels program, said Monday in an email.
Safe Travels requires domestic airline passengers arriving in Hawaii to quarantine for 10 days unless they have an exception, such as for being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or having tested negative for the disease.
Auwe
Banks have been urging us lately to do more of our banking online, by mail, as well as using ATMs; anything rather than going into a branch to see a human teller for transactions. So I rarely do any banking business with a teller. However, recently I went in to cash a paper U.S. savings bond and was told the practice of bond-cashing had been stopped at my bank. The teller showed me a framed sign with the notice that the bank was ending cashing the paper bonds, and we needed to do so online (at treasurydirect.gov) from now on, which is not a simple process. Because I rarely go into a physical bank, I was not aware of this change until too late. Our local banks should reinstate cashing paper bonds and allow us an amnesty period to do so.
— A reader
(Kokua Line has received similar complaints from other readers, who don’t all bank at the same place; policies seem to have changed fairly recently. We’ll follow up on this topic.)
Mahalo
A very grateful thank you to the honest person who turned in my lost credit card at Costco Waipio. I was so relieved to receive a call that it had been found. I wish I could personally thank this unknown good Samaritan. May this kind person be rewarded with unlimited blessings. — Appreciative senior
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
71