Kokua Line: Will license plate covers foil red-light cams?

Question: I support the red-light camera system. My question is, What happens to drivers who have an illegal dark license plate cover on their vehicle? Are they exempt?

Answer: No. “The Red-Light Safety Camera technology is designed to reduce the effects of license-plate covers, prism covers and other photo blockers,” said Shelly Kunishige, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation.

As you indicated, state law (Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 249-7) requires that license plates must be displayed “entirely unobscured,” Kunishige said. “By driving with a license-plate cover they could receive a $70 citation,” she said. That’s separate from a ticket for running a red light, which is $200 for a first offense, DOT says on its website.

Other readers have asked similar questions, specifically whether the cameras could capture a legible image of a license plate covered with a shade, which are widely available for purchase. As Kunishige said, the system is designed to work despite drivers’ potential attempts to evade enforcement.

Q: Is it too late to suggest other intersections for the red-light cameras? All the engineering studies are in urban Honolulu, but there are some intersections on the West side where running red lights is rampant.

A: The state isn’t taking suggestions at this point. Potential locations for the two-year pilot program were limited to the jurisdiction of the 1st District Court “to aid in evaluation of the pilot. Should the pilot be considered successful, we will make a recommendation to expand the Red-Light Safety Camera Program statewide,” Kunishige said.

The automated ticketing system is not yet operational. Studies are underway to decide which intersections should have the cameras, which will photograph vehicles running red lights and generate tickets for their registered owners. Ten of 14 intersections under consideration will be chosen.

Q: Regarding who gets the ticket from red-light camera (808ne.ws/28kline), why don’t they take a picture of the driver, too, not only the license plate? These cameras are fast. My wife and I also jointly register our cars. Joint ownership of expensive personal property is not rare — our estate planner suggested it — so this could be a problem for many if they automatically send the ticket to the first person listed on the registration.

A: The state DOT has said that photographing the driver is not a solution because the state law authorizing the program (HRS Chapter 291J) specifies in Section 7 that the vehicle’s registered owner is responsible for the citation. Privacy concerns about photographing drivers and passengers were raised when the law was written.

Officials haven’t decided exactly how to ticket vehicles with more than one registered owner, but expect to make a decision by month’s end.

Q: Do you have to sign your name on the survey about who should be the new HPD chief?

A: No. To be clear, the online survey doesn’t mention specific candidates for the top job at the Honolulu Police Department. It asks what qualities and characteristics the next chief should have. There’s a link to the survey on HPD’s website, honolulupd.org.

Outdoor courts

Honolulu County’s Department of Parks and Recreation has posted the results of its survey about use of its outdoor sport courts. You can read it at 808ne.ws/dprpoll or via the DPR website, honolulu.gov/parks.html. Tennis players and pickleball players predominated among the 1,877 responses, with most saying there weren’t enough courts for their activity. Opinions about playing time limits were split, but there was broad agreement about commercial activity on public courts. Nearly 73% of all respondents said it shouldn’t be allowed. The survey will be used to help draft new proposed rules for municipal outdoor courts.

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.