STAND. COM. REP. NO.524

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: H.B. No. 123

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B. No. 123 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SPEEDING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to protect school children and roadway workers from speeding vehicles by:

(1) Requiring the Director of Transportation and the counties to establish maximum speed limits for school zones and construction areas and to place official signs in these areas; and

(2) Establishing fines for speeding.

The Department of Transportation (DOT), Honolulu Police Department, and the State Representative from the 46th District testified in support of this measure. The Department of Education supported the intent of this bill.

Your Committee finds that the number of accidents in school zones and construction areas is significant. According to DOT, over the past five years, there have been:

(1) 1,653 crashes in school zones, resulting in 13 deaths and 1,535 injuries; and

(2) 1,113 crashes in work zones, resulting in eight deaths and 932 injuries.

Although not all of these accidents involved speeding, children in school zones and roadway workers remain extremely vulnerable to speeding vehicles.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 123 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation,

____________________________

JOSEPH M. SOUKI, Chair