Letters | 3-5-15

Designate certain roads for cyclists

In January 2014, I wrote a letter to the editor regarding not allowing commercial bike tours to operate on our rural roads because of the obvious safety issues. Sunday morning my wife and I passed the scene where a cyclist was killed on Waikoloa Road. The investigation was still going on, the crushed bike and police car were still awaiting transport on the tow truck. My 2014 article was published and to my surprise, many residents responded in agreement.

Today we mourn the unnecessary loss of life. Not surprising, some of the cycling community have come back with the same ole rhetoric. “The county needs to improve the roads,” “drive with aloha.” These are impossible in my opinion and let me posit why. The County of Hawaii nor its residents have the financial resources to improve all the roads. This is a reality. Hawaii Island is too large and the roads too extensive. A better solution would be for the county to designate which roadways are currently safe for bicycle traffic and limit or regulate cyclists to those roadways. I would be interested in hearing from those of you who would support such an ordinance.

The cycling community can then go through the public process to recommend which roads should be improved for cycling and help source the funding. Cars and bicycles don’t mix well. Not here in Hawaii, not anywhere else in the world. “Drive with Aloha,” “Made with Aloha,” Aloha served here,” “A Taste of

Aloha,” “Land of Aloha” — these are slogans, not solutions and certainly not native in origin. I don’t know where people got the idea that if you throw “aloha” at something, it gets better. Let’s not be so shallow and disrespectful of the host culture. I have read good things about the person who died on Sunday. He was a seasoned cyclist and active in his community. My condolences to his family.

Charles Young

Honaunau

Fine those leaving fishing lines in water

I saw on the news as well about the whale that had to be disentangled from all the fishing lines. It must have taken many people, as well as a great deal of fuel to follow the whale, attach a buoy and disentangle it.

I think the fisherman whose fishing gear it was that was responsible for all this should be fined for leaving his gear where our marine creatures can get caught up in them. Maybe then he’ll think twice about being so careless.

If all fishermen were more attentive to what they leave behind, all the monk seals, turtles and sharks wouldn’t get tangled up and die. It’s time for everyone to be more responsible and leave the sea the way they found it.

Colleen Miyose-Wallis

Kona resident