Off the news: Deadly toll puts focus on road safety

Every traffic-related death is tragic, with most avoidable if not for distracted, careless or obstructed driving.

Already in this new year, there have been four traffic fatalities, three of them involving pedestrians. It’s good to hear that on Oahu, police will continue setting up impaired-driving checkpoints through the end of February to reduce traffic injuries and deaths. But also of note is that 3 of 4 traffic deaths this year have occurred on Hawaii island — so that county seems in need of a public-service campaign for all to be more careful on the roads.