Motorists traveling through the intersection of Kaahumahu Street and Komo Mai Drive in Pearl City got the message to slow down and drive safely on Tuesday during the CTAP – Community Traffic Awareness Program sign waving event.
HPD Officers from the District 3 Community Policing Team joined volunteers from the office of State Representative K. Mark Takai (and Takai ohana) and community to sign wave to remind motorists to drive safely, slowdown and obey the speed limit as they commute through our Pearl City and Aiea neighborhoods.
HPD Officers set up a speed trap on Kaahumanu Street during the CTAP event that ran from 4-5pm. Over a dozen citations were issued to motorists in that one hour period on Tuesday.
The next CTAP sign waving event will be held this Thursday, June 14 on Kaahele Street fronting the Newtown Recreation Center in Aiea from 4-5pm.
Photo by Barry Villamil | [email protected]
HPD had their hands full pulling over drivers and issuing citations during CTAP on Kaahumanu Street on Tuesday, June 12, 2012.
Photo by Barry Villamil | [email protected]
CTAP volunteers pose for a photo at the corner of Kaahumahu Street and Komo Mai Drive in Pearl City on Tuesday, June 12, 2012.
NEW PEDESTRIAN CROSSING FLAGS DEBUT ON FLAG DAY
Community effort leads to new pedestrian aid
Aiea, Hawaii – Pedestrians crossing Kaahele Street in Aiea will have a new tool to keep cars at bay: bright orange flags.
Residents of Newtown will join elected officials to debut and celebrate this new community-driven initiative at 4 p.m. on Thursday, June 14 – Flag Day. Aiea resident Carmille Lim contacted Rep. K. Mark Takai (D-Aiea/Pearl City) regarding her concern of pedestrian safety on Kaahele Street, fronting the Newtown Recreation Center.
Lim and Takai worked together with city officials and, in March 2012, the City approved the pedestrian flag pilot program with Takai’s assurances that the cost and maintenance of the flags will be borne by the community. Takai donated the funds for the purchase of the initial 25 flags and he hand-made the flag holders.
“We hope the flags will prevent accidents and make pedestrians feel safer while crossing,” Takai said. “If this six-month pilot project is successful, we hope to do the same in other areas of our community.”
The flags are situated on both sides of the street and pedestrians carry the flags, which sit in small bins, while they cross the busy street. Once the pedestrians reach the other side, people can return the flags to the bin on the other side.
On October 12, 2009, a pedestrian was fatally struck while in this crosswalk. Nancy McCue lost her mother and the grandmother of her children in the accident. As a result of the October 2009 accident, McCue along with family members and concerned area residents, have joined the coordinated efforts of Takai and the Honolulu Police Department as volunteers for CTAP (Community Traffic Awareness Program) sign waving events.
CTAP volunteers have conducted numerous sign waving events on Kaahele Street with the first one held on the one year anniversary of the fatal accident. CTAP’s foremost objective is to bring awareness to the problem of speeding on Kaahele Street and existing streets as motorists commute through the community.
“CTAPs are important to raise awareness in our communities that have chronic complaints of speeding,” said Officer Anthony Bonilla. “We want to create a partnership with communities with concerns about speeders.”
In addition to the debut of the new pedestrian flag, residents and volunteers from the community will be out on the street holding signs to remind drivers to be aware of the speed limit and to drive safely.
“There continues to be a problem with people speeding up and down Kaahele Street at all times of the day and this often results in pedestrian accidents,” Takai said. “We need drivers to obey the speed limit along this busy street.”
Joining Takai and Lim for the debut of the pedestrian flags and the CTAP will be Councilmember Breene Harimoto, City Director of Transportation Services Wayne Yoshioka, Harbor Terrance Community Association President Margie Davis, McCue and numerous community residents.
For more information contact: Rep. K. Mark Takai (586-8455/330-6275)