By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Transportation Writer

A good road is more than asphalt, curbs, striping and synchronized traffic lights. The best roads also have plenty of trees, shrubs, pedestrian spaces and interesting things to see.

"No question about it," says Rodney Swink, national president of the American Society of Landscape Architects who was in Hawai'i for a whirlwind tour that gave him ample opportunity to see our city as we most often experience it, from behind a windshield.

"Public space dictates private response," he said. "A good-looking street benefits everyone. It helps the bottom line for businesses and customers alike."

Swink's two-day visit included stops in downtown Honolulu, Kalihi, Waikiki, Kaimuki, East Honolulu, Punchbowl and, for a little contrast, Lihu'e. In general, he likes what he saw.

"A first-time visitor like myself comes to Hawai'i with high expectations," said Swink, who works full time as the Main Street program director for the state of North Carolina. "I can't say I'm disappointed with what I've seen so far."

"Of course, the first thing you see is the industrial area near the airport," Swink said. "You've got to do a little more work on making your front door more attractive."

Swink points to Singapore as a city that has transformed itself through plantings. Once a rather barren, concrete-dominated urban center, Swink said Singapore has used extensive plantings to create a "fabulous public realm that landscapers can hold up as a model for the rest of the world."

Even with traffic problems that make Honolulu's congestion seem minor by comparison, Singapore has been able to create "really nice streets alive with people and plantings."

Swink worries that much of the obviously young plantings he saw around town here won't be maintained in the future.

"Sometimes communities are a lot more enthusiastic about planting trees than maintaining them," Swink said. "You've got to make sure the plantings are sustainable. Sometimes that might mean cutting back on plantings so that you can take better care of what you already have."

Swink said he's glad to hear that Hawai'i is on the leading edge of the biggest landscaping movement in the country, a return to native plantings and conservation efforts, although he winced a little when told of the hanging petunia baskets that line Kalakaua Avenue through Waikiki.

The new Hanauma Bay visitors center is an excellent example of a building "wondrously married to its site and enhanced by use of native plants," he said.

With that, Swink was headed back into his rental car, off to look at more of our city through a professional eye.

"A really nice street exudes character," he said.

It's a thought worth pondering the next time you're stuck in traffic.

Reach Mike Leidemann at mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5460.