EDITORIAL
Red-light runners need tough deterrent

If there's one thing those who navigate our streets can agree on, it's that it is scary out there.

Potholes. Drivers who don't stop for pedestrians or yield to bicyclists. Pedestrians who cross against the light. Bicyclists who don't believe traffic laws apply to them. And chronic red-light runners.

Police officers can't be everywhere at all times. But traffic cameras at major intersections can prompt motorists who see yellow and red traffic signals as cause to speed through intersections to think twice. So, it is disappointing that state senators have likely killed a plan to allow counties to use cameras to catch drivers who run red lights.

Red-light running has become epidemic on O'ahu roadways, and it is amazing there haven't been more accidents.

The state House of Representatives passed a bill that would have authorized photo traffic enforcement, but two Senate committees last week voted to hold the bill.

Senate Transportation Chairwoman Lorraine Inouye, who introduced the red-light camera bill, said there was not enough support from her colleagues.

Perhaps that's because the despised van camera program is still fresh in our minds, but that program failed largely because of misguided implementation and lack of public input.

For the sake and safety of motorists and pedestrians alike, red-light runners need a stronger deterrent.

It is time for legislators to do the right thing, take the political heat if necessary, and make our streets safer. Red-light cameras work well in other jurisdictions. With the proper safeguards and careful implementation, they can be equally effective here, too.

Let's not wait until lives are lost. The time to act is now.