Text & Images by Malia k Harunaga

3.13.2020

Feeling stressed by all the bombarding talk of the “new corona virus”? Worried that your stockpile of toilet paper won’t last you long enough? Scared each time you hear someone cough?

Go ride a bicycle.

While fear grips people’s mind hearing celebrities, national leaders, and famous sports players test positive for COVID-19, try not to go into panic mode. Having it would not be a good time, just like getting the flu is never fun, but the reality is that 93% of those that contract the virus have already recovered and are back to normal (current stats here). There are some that have contracted the corona virus and display no symptoms at all — or experience only mild cold-like symptoms that resolve on their own (source: yalemedicine.org). As you have read I’m sure many times at this point, older adults (those over 60 years of age) and people who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 (source: CDC).

What does this mean for you?

Go ride a bicycle!

Cycling is a great cardiovascular exercise that is not only low-impact, but can help boost your immune system! Of course that is great for everyday life, helping you ward off getting a cold or flu, but certainly essential in the time of the corona virus. “An organ called the thymus, which makes immune cells called T-cells, normally starts to shrink from the age of 20. But the thymuses of older cyclists were found to be generating as many T-cells as those of young people” (source: TheGuardian). In general, physical activity can help flush out bacteria from your lungs and airways, therefore reducing your chance of getting sick (source: cycleplan.co.uk).

Recent cycling-related studies show that just 30 minutes of biking exercise can have an overwhelmingly positive effect on your immune system (source: velosurance). Do you have half an hour to spare to get your bike out and ride? It’s well worth it. You’ll be getting out of the house, taking in the beauty of living in Hawai‘i, and doing good for not only your body but your mind as well.

Exercise can improve your well-being, self-confidence, and reduce stress and depression. “Cortisol, the hormone that is released when you become stressed, can actually suppress the effectiveness of the immune system. That means that stress has the strong potential to weaken the immune system” (source: velosurance). Biking helps reduce cortisol levels in the body and also promotes the releases endorphins to make you feel happier and less stressed. Why does this happen? “You hear more about gray matter in the brain, but white matter matters, too. White matter, found mostly beneath the brain’s surface, has been likened to a subway system connecting different regions of the brain. A breakdown in this system can slow thinking and lead to other cognitive deficits. Fortunately, there’s evidence that practicing a motor skill, such as repeatedly punching in karate, helps keep the system running smoothly” (source: Psychology Today). Repetitive motion – does that sound like a familiar physical activity? Pedaling a bicycle certainly fits that criteria.

So if biking can boost your immune system, make you feel less stressed, and combat other chronic diseases like Type 2 diabetes (source: People Powered Movement), what are you waiting for? Get on your bicycle, and we’ll see you out on the road!

Testify on-time on SB2994SD1 by 12n Mon 2/24 

Submit Testimony in Support of Safe Streets for All

Submit by Mon 2/24/20 12n or late Tues 2/25

1. Click here to create your own account at Hawaii legislature (it only takes a second)
2. Click here for SB2994SD1
3. Select “Submit Testimony”
4. Write your testimony (it doesn’t need to be long)

SB2994SD1 is scheduled for decision-making  (written testimony only allowed, no oral testimonies) Tuesday February 25, at 12n, Room 016 (basement). Testimony is due (24-hours before the decision-making) but late testimony is accepted until Tuesday 2/20/20 just before the hearing by email to JDCtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov (Sen Rhoads office 586-6130). To add to your impact, come out to the decision-making in person. Capitol Building room 016.

Track bills: After SB2994 is done in the Senate, there will be more hearings in the House and Senate on the “other house’s” bills that cross over. Get an email alert by signing up for hearing notification.  Just add HB1676 and SB2994, the red light camera bills, to your notification list (it’s automatic).

Join our Bike Advocacy Team (if you haven’t already) to get the latest updates and submit testimony.

(Updated 2/23/20)

Join HBL in supporting Red Light Safety Cameras and Safe Streets

For more information: chad@hbl.org 808-255-8271.

At Hawaii Bicycling League, we advocate for safer streets for bicycling and for everyone. As part of our Safe Streets for All advocacy we are pushing for red light enforcement cameras that will make our intersections (the most dangerous parts of our streets) safer for everyone. SB2994 provides for a Red Light Safety Camera Program for all the counties and HDOT to implement. HB1676 provides for a 3-year pilot program limited to central urban Honolulu. While HBL will support either of these as they provide a path for Red Light Safety Cameras to start saving lives on our streets, we strongly prefer  SB2994 which allows for the Red Light Safety Cameras to be installed anywhere around the state where they can and will save lives. Please join us in supporting SB2994 to make our Streets Safer for All. Click to read HBL’s red light camera testimonies on SB2994 on 2/6,  on HB1676 on 1/30,  on HB1676HD1 on 2/12,  HB1676HD1 on 2/20 in Finance  and on SB2994SD1 on2/23

Why support Red Light Enforcement Cameras:

• Red light running is dangerous for people that walk, bike, and drive — in the US in 2014, red light running was a factor in 710 deaths, including 44 bicycle and pedestrian deaths (source). Hawaii DOT’s analysis found 13 people were killed by red light running in the last 8 years (2011-18).
• Red Light Enforcement Cameras reduce crashes & injuries – a summary of studies found they reduce crashes at signalized intersections by 25-30% (source)
• Red Light Enforcement Cameras reduce the most serious crashes – while some studies have found that red light cameras slightly increase rear-end collisions, the evidence is consistent that they significantly reduce “angle” (aka T-bone) crashes which are most likely to result in serious injury or death (source)
• Red Light Enforcement Cameras save lives – a study of red light enforcement cameras in the US estimated that by 2014 they had saved nearly 1,300 lives (source)

In 2019, the Hawaii Legislature adopted Act 131 establishing a committee to study Red Light Safety Cameras. The committee included all the county police departments, all the county prosecutors, all the county transportation departments, the Hawaii Department of Transportation, public defenders office, and community safe streets advocates including MADD, HBL, Blue Zones, and AAA-Hawaii. The committee report produced a strong recommendation that Red Light Safety Cameras have a role to play in making our streets safer and that they should be implemented. See the report here. 

What are Red Light Safety Enforcement Cameras under current best practices:

• Cameras that issue citations to drivers who run red lights
• Cameras will be at fixed locations with signs warning drivers of the cameras
• Cameras will be placed where data shows red light running, traffic crashes and injuries
• Camera providers will be paid a flat fee no matter how many tickets issued (unlike the “Van Cams” in 2002 where the operate was paid a per ticket fee and therefore incentivized to issue more citations)
• If a vehicle enters the intersection on a green/yellow light it will not be ticketed for not leaving the intersection by the red light
• Each county must separately decide to implement red light cameras
• Each county police and transportation department will use data on crashes, injuries, deaths, vehicle usage, and red light running frequency to determine where cameras are placed
• Registered owners may escape responsibility if someone else uses their car
• Only those who run red lights have their photos taken
• Car rental companies may escape responsibility by identifying the renter

Additional Resources

• Click here to read HBL’s red light camera

  testimonies on SB2994 on 2/6,  on HB1676 on 1/30  ,  on HB1676HD1 on 2/12  HB1676HD1 in Finance on 2/20 and SB2994SD1 on2/23           

• National study on red light camera best practices including case studies from Portland, Virginia Beach and San Diego
• Operational best practices by Federal Highway Administration
• List of 389 US communities with red light cameras

Submit Testimony in Support of Safe Streets for All

Submit by Mon 2/24/20 12n or late Tues 2/25

1. Click here to create your own account at Hawaii legislature (it only takes a second)
2. Click here for SB2994SD1
3. Select “Submit Testimony”
4. Write your testimony (it doesn’t need to be long)

SB2994SD1 is scheduled for decision-making  (written testimony only allowed, no oral testimonies) Tuesday February 25, at 12n, Room 016 (basement). Testimony is due (24-hours before the decision-making) but late testimony is accepted until Tuesday 2/20/20 just before the hearing by email to JDCtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov (Sen Rhoads office 586-6130). To add to your impact, come out to the decision-making in person. Capitol Building room 016.

Click here to read HBL’s red light camera testimonies:

SB2994 on 2/6  HB1676 on 1/30. HB1676HD1 on 2/12.  HB1676HD1 in Finance on 2/20.

and on SB2994SD1 on2/23