STAND. COM. REP. NO. 506

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 287

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred S.B. No. 287 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO VISION ZERO,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Department of Transportation and the counties to implement a Vision Zero program that aims to eliminate all traffic fatalities and serious injuries by the year 2030.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Honolulu Police Department, Hawai‘i Public Health Institute, Hawaii Bicycling League, and two individuals.

Your Committee finds that traffic fatalities and serious injuries continue to be an area of concern for the Legislature. Sweden adopted a national Vision Zero policy in 1997 and by 2013 had achieved the lowest number of road accidents on record.

Your Committee further finds that existing statute directs the Department of Transportation and county transportation departments to adopt a Vision Zero policy, but no implementation date is specified. Therefore, to ensure a Vision Zero program is implemented in a timely manner, your Committee finds that this measure should amend existing statute to specify an implementation date and Vision Zero program goal date, and include reporting requirements to increase the accountability of the state and county transportation departments.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Amending section 286-7.5, relating to Vision Zero, rather than creating a new statutory section;

(2) Establishing the goal of the Vision Zero program to eliminate all traffic fatalities and serious injuries in Hawaii by 2045; 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 that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 287, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 287, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

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

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CHRIS LEE, Chair