Lying down at bus stops now illegal during certain hours

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STAR-ADVERTISER

A make-shift bed is left behind at a bus stop in Ewa. It is now illegal to lie down at bus stops between certain hours.

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GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARADVERTISER.COM

A woman known as Cindy prepared to bed down Tuesday night at a bus stop along Ala Moana Boulevard near Halekauwila Street — where she spends most nights. A bill signed by the mayor makes it illegal to lie down at bus stops between certain hours.

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A bill making it illegal to lie down at or near city bus stops was signed into law by Mayor Kirk Caldwell this week.

Bill 99 (2017) makes it illegal for people to lie down at a designated bus stop and surrounding area between 4 a.m. on one day and 1 a.m. the next.

While the bill does not specifically target the homeless, those without shelter who choose to sleep at bus stops will no longer be able to do so during those 21 hours each day. Those hours were selected based on when TheBus generally operates.

Introduced by City Councilman Trevor Ozawa, the new law defines a bus stop area as “the area at a bus stop occupying the entire width of the sidewalk that extends 20 feet before a bus stop or bus stop route sign, or for bus stops furnished with a shelter or shelters, the footprint of the shelters and the entire width of the sidewalk that extends 10 feet before and 10 feet after the footprint of the shelter.”

The new law will go into effect June 12, giving the Honolulu Police Department and the Department of Transportation Services 120 days from Caldwell’s approval to educate the public before beginning enforcement.

A law enforcement officer may not cite someone for lying down at a bus stop area without first issuing a warning. Violators would pay a $50 fine.

The ordinance would not apply to anyone under age 6 who is lying down in a carriage, stroller or carrier, or is lying down while being held or carried by another person not lying down.

Noting that 214,000 trips are taken by TheBus passengers each weekday, Caldwell said in a release, “Just as our sidewalks are meant for the movement of pedestrians, our covered bus stops are meant to provide shelter for riders of TheBus and need to be kept free and clear.”

Ozawa said the thrust of the bill is passenger safety. “Our constituents should feel safe and comfortable as they wait for a ride on any public transit system,” he said.

In related news, the Kauai County Transportation Agency announced that effective Monday, all county bus stops for use by the public will be closed between midnight and 4 a.m. daily under new rules and regulations.

For more information, go to kauai.gov/Transportation/.