By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Transportation Writer

City officials are gearing up a new program to protect elderly pedestrians, but some residents are wondering why officials aren't making drivers the real target of the program.

The new safety campaign, Walk Wise Kupuna, is designed to educate seniors about the danger of walking in Hawai'i, where the death rate for pedestrians, especially elderly ones, is among the highest in the country. It is designed to reach out to elderly walkers, through television ads and at community meetings, and give them tips on the safest ways to get across the street.

Some people, though, think that sounds like pedestrians are being blamed for their own demise. The real problem, they say, is the careless or uncaring way drivers ignore the existing laws designed to protect walkers.

"The primary reason pedestrian fatalities are so high is simply because HPD has no law-enforcement officers," said Drive Time reader Rico Leffanta. "As a result, one rarely sees drivers slow down — or stop — when they see a pedestrian in the crosswalk."

Many other readers called or e-mailed with similar complaints. They say that time and again drivers aggressively plow through intersections or crosswalks, run red lights or make illegal turns without giving a second thought to pedestrians or the consequences of hitting someone.

"We look the driver right in the eye ... they don't even care," was the way one reader put it.

Helen Eschenbacher said she stood at one Makiki intersection recently and counted more than 100 cars in a few hours that went through the crosswalk without stopping properly.

"What's worse is they'll start honking and screaming at you if you try to walk even when you have the right of way," she said.

City officials say they do plan to include enforcement and education efforts for drivers, but it's clear that many people still think the police are not doing enough.

Leffanta said that several weeks ago he watched police officers conducting a seat-belt checkpoint in Honolulu who completely ignored other violations that endangered pedestrians. "They said, 'Yeah, that's a problem but that's not what we're doing today,' " he said.

Given what seems to be a growing trend of drivers who don't know or care about pedestrian right-of-way rules, officials say a walker's best defense is probably a good defense. The old campaign to drive defensively probably is good advice for pedestrians: Walk defensively, even if you are in the right.

Among the tips officials are trying to get across to the elderly walkers:

• Look for vehicles before stepping from the sidewalk.
• Make eye contact with drivers.
• Wear bright or light-colored clothing; use reflective materials when it's dark.

People out on the street, though, say even that's not enough. It's best to think that every single driver is out to get you and to act accordingly. It shouldn't have to be that way, of course, but it is.

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