STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1557-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: S.B. No. 2470

S.D. 2

H.D. 1

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred S.B. No. 2470, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Authorize the Department of Transportation to evaluate an intersection for the installation of a leading pedestrian interval and accessible pedestrian signal upon the first placement or replacement of a state‑owned pedestrian signal head;

(2) Require that accessible pedestrian signals are installed at intersections where leading pedestrian intervals are already installed;

(3) Require that additional safety improvements, such as "No Turn on Red" signs, are implemented as necessary where leading pedestrian intervals and accessible pedestrian signals are installed;

(4) Require the Department of Transportation to evaluate no fewer than twenty-five existing intersections with pedestrian signal heads on an annual basis until each intersection with a pedestrian signal head showing a pedestrian crash within the last five years has been evaluated;

(5) Require the Department of Transportation, in coordination with the counties, to establish a program through which pedestrians and community members may request the installation of accessible pedestrian signals at specific intersections; and

(6) Appropriate funds out of the State Highway Fund for the Department of Transportation to install leading pedestrian intervals and accessible pedestrian signals.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Transportation; Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization; Disability and Communication Access Board; PATH-People for Active Transportation Hawaii; Hawaii Association of the Blind; Aloha Independent Living Hawaii; Hawaii Disability Rights Center; Hawaiʻi Bicycling League; Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice; Get Fit Kauaʻi; National Federation of the Blind of Hawaii; and four individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Health.

Your Committee finds that pedestrian fatalities in Hawaii have increased significantly in recent years, highlighting the urgent need to improve pedestrian safety throughout the State. Your Committee further finds that leading pedestrian intervals and accessible pedestrian signals are widely recognized safety measures that allow pedestrians to establish their presence in crosswalks and provide critical audible and tactile cues for individuals who are blind or have low vision. By requiring the Department of Transportation to evaluate intersections for the installation of leading pedestrian intervals and accessible pedestrian signals, implement additional safety improvements where appropriate, and establish a process through which community members may request accessible pedestrian signals, this measure improves pedestrian safety and promotes more inclusive pedestrian infrastructure.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying the number of existing intersections with pedestrian signal heads that the Department of Transportation is required and authorized to evaluate;

(2) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

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

Your Committee notes a request to the Department of Transportation to clarify cost estimates for the installation of leading pedestrian intervals and accessible pedestrian signals and provide that information to the Committee on Finance, should it deliberate on this measure.

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. 2470, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2470, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

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

____________________________

DARIUS KILA, Chair