STAND. COM. REP. NO. 611

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1666

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.B. No. 1666 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Require each county, in collaboration with the Department of Transportation, to establish a Summer Streets Pilot Program that closes vehicular traffic and repurposes roads for pedestrian and cyclist use, outdoor events, and other community-driven activities; and

(2) Require each county to submit an initial proposal to the Director of Transportation.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Transportation, Department of Health, Cycle on Hawaii, Hawaiʻi Bicycling League, People for Active Transportation Hawaii, and ten individuals.

Your Committee finds that streets and public spaces are invaluable resources that, when adapted for multi-use purposes, can enhance community life by providing safe and inclusive opportunities for recreation, active transportation, and cultural engagement. In 2017, a successful pilot program to reimagine urban spaces was implemented in Malmo, Sweden, which demonstrated the transformative power of temporarily repurposing streets and public spaces into dynamic areas for pedestrian use, cycling, and community-centered activities. This measure will reduce carbon emissions, encourage sustainable transportation, and promote community health by establishing a similar pilot program in the State.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the appropriation to an unspecified amount;

(2) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

(3) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1666, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1666, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts,

________________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair