Introduction
The Hawaii Department of Transport is a state transport authority, which oversees transport services in the Hawaii State, and is based in the Honolulu City. The department is divided into three major divisions including; roads, maritime, and aviation divisions. This paper analyses the administrative units of the US Hawaii Department of Transport through examining; its mission and vision statements, policies governing its operations, as well as ways through which these policies and procedures are carried out. The Hawaii Department of Transport is headed by an executive, known as the Director of Transportation. The department is tasked with the establishment, maintenance, and operation of the transport facilities of the Hawaii State, which include; airports, highways, harbours, as well as others which are authorized by the established laws (State of Hawaii, 2019). The department has a well laid down mission statements, policies, and structures that ensure its seamless operations.
Divisions of the Department
The department has three major divisions that include; airport division, highways division, and harbour division (Hawaii Department of Transportation, 2019). These divisions have specified responsibilities and procedures for their operations. Firstly, there is the airport division which is concerned with the operations of all the public airports such as the Daniel K, Inouye International airport, Hana Airport, Kalaeloa Airport, Kalaupapa Airport, Lihue Airport, Honolulu Airport, Hili International Airport, as well as others; through the Hawaii State. Additionally, the division of the airport is sub-divided into branches and offices that offer location-based or specialization-based services (State of Hawaii, 2019). These branches and offices include; Staff Service Office, Airport Operations office, Information Technology Office, Engineering Branch, Airport Administrator Office, Oahu District, Hawaii District, Visitor Information Program Office, Maui District, and Kauai District.
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Secondly, there is the Harbours division which is concerned with the operations of the States ten commercial harbours. These duties and powers of the Harbour Division were initially held by the Board of Harbour Commissioners until they were transferred to the Hawaii Department of Transportation in 1961. The Harbour Division is self-reliant and draws most of its income from a variety of wharf and harbour rental fees. The Harbour Division is tasked with the operations of ten Hawaii State commercial harbours which include the; Honolulu Harbor, Hana Harbor, Port Allen Harbour, Kalaeloa Harbour, Hilo Harbour, Nawiiwii Harbour, Kahalui Harbour, Kawaihae Harbour, Kaunakakai Harbour, and Kaumalapau Harbour (State of Hawaii, 2019). Lastly, there is the Highway Division which is tasked with the maintenance of all the Hawaii Highway System.
Operational Purpose
The Hawaii Department of Transport is responsible for all the operations of all forms of transport in Hawaii State which include; land, water, and air. Specifically, the Hawaii Department of Transport (2019) is tasked with maintaining, developing, coordinating, operating, promoting, and constructing all the transport infrastructure of the State. The department has several programs of transport management that comprise of; bicycling programs, alternate work and school hours programs, and ride-sharing programs. Consequently, ride-sharing programs entail the informal actions whereby two or more people ride together in a motor vehicle. Therefore, the Hawaii Department of Transport (2019) is responsible for developing and promoting ride-sharing programs which include; vanpool and carpool services, and helping interested organizations in promoting such programs, coordinating and planning for contracts with private entities to operate and manage these programs, and help in formulating ride-sharing programs.
Mission Statement and Codes of Conduct
Mission Statement
The Hawaii Department of Transport (2019) has a well-formulated Mission Statement which seeks to provide an efficient safe, sustainable and accessible intermodal system of transport that enhances the movement of people and commodities, and promotes the prosperity of the economy and the quality of life of its citizens.
Policies and Codes of Conduct
The department has well defined legal structures that affect; the inspection and certification of vehicles, and any person that applies for a Hawaii’s driver’s license (Hawaii Administrative Rules, 2017) . Firstly, the codes of conduct affect Hawaii’s driver’s license applicants like the US nationals and foreign applicants, people who apply for a learner's permit, and the holders of permits who pass their road tests to acquire a driver’s license. Additionally, these legal structures apply to any person who has just migrated to Hawaii from other countries or US States, including any person renewing their permits or driver’s license.
Secondly, according to Hawaii Administrative Rules (2017), there are three main areas where the codes of conduct affect the inspection and certification of vehicles: First, all ambulances must be inspected and certified every six months. Second, all taxicabs must be inspected ones every year. Third, any other vehicle that includes; semi-trailers, trailers, and vehicles must be inspected after every one year. Additionally, vehicles with weights over ten thousand pounds GVWR and without an exemption from DOT, from motor carrier program; shall be inspected under such conditions. On the other hand, new non-motor carrier automobiles must be inspected before or on the date they were first purchased, and subsequently after every one year from the date they were purchased.
Communication and enforcement of the Policies and Codes of Conduct
There are many ways through which the Policies and Codes of Conduct are communicated in Hawaii. The laid out policies and codes of conduct are communicated through; the Hawaii State Constitution, the Hawaii State website, as well as through the Hawaii State Department of Transport. These policies are communicated through the Hawaii State government order papers, periodicals, and Magazines. Besides, mainstream media advertisement can be used to reach the general public for awareness.
Analysis of the Policies and Codes of Conduct
The legal structures of the Hawaii Department of Transport (2019) are well described to conform to the missions of the department. All the Hawaii's Department of Transport Policies is consistent to the department's mission statement, which seeks to provide an efficient safe, sustainable and accessible intermodal system of transport that enhances the movement of people and commodities while promoting the prosperity of the economy and the quality of life of its citizens. For instance, on the issue of motor vehicle inspection and certification, all the measures taken are aimed at ensuring that the vehicle is in good condition and the driver of the vehicle is safe while driving it. Additionally, inspection is not only about the driver and the vehicle itself, but it also ensures the safety of other road users.
During the inspection, the vehicle's condition is examined for any defects that may endanger the lives of the driver, the passengers, and pedestrians. All these aspects are congruent with the mission statement of the Hawaii Department of Transport (2019). On the issue of the application for driver's license and permits, the applicants are expected to be people who are of sound mind and of the right age to drive vehicles on the roads. This ensures the safety of all road users as well as that of the drivers (Hawaii Administrative Rules, 2017). Consequently, underage people are considered to be people whose judgment is still not stable enough to operate motor vehicles. Moreover, these policies are clear to understand which minimizes any case of misinterpretation and misunderstanding. Failure to adhere to these policies and codes of conduct would result in avoidable accidents on the roads, therefore minimizing road accidents. Additionally, motor vehicle inspection ensures that car owners maintain their vehicles to the right standards.
Recommended Amendments
Road safety is a crucial global challenge that still ails many countries around the globe. Several studies have shown that accidents impede social and economic development in addition to causing preventable deaths (Sustainable Urban Transport Project, 2017) . Some of the ways through which accidents are caused include; recklessness, ignorance of the rules and regulations governing road usage, poor road conditions, poor climate conditions, and well as poor conditions of the motor vehicles. Therefore, countries need to take urgent measures to avert some of the impacts of accidents. Although the policies are clear and easily understandable, some road users may still ignore them for lack of knowledge on their significance to the road users, the drivers, as well as the vehicle. According to the Hawaii Department of Transportation (2019), preventive measures should be implemented by the State and local authorities to protect the lives of road users from injuries, unwarranted deaths, social, and economic effects that befall the families of the victims of these accidents. Therefore, the Department of Transport should enforce strict measures to ensure that all road users adhere to these standards and policies.
Sustainable Urban Transport Project (2017) highlights that the seriousness of the enforcement of the policies can be ensured through several ways: First, the effectiveness of transport policies can be achieved through the establishment of effective and integrated coordination and management of road safety activities. Secondly, the effectiveness of the policies can be achieved through the establishment of sustainable funding to ensure proper implementation of the road safety programs. Thirdly, valuable implementation of the transport systems used can be achieved through the development of urban databases that could be used to understand and analyse the challenges of transport systems usage. Fourth, effective implementation of transport safety can also be achieved through the development of integrated State-wide multiagency transport safety programs. Furthermore, effective policy implementation concerning the transport system can be achieved vial the creation and implementation of infrastructure improvement programs such as hazardous management of locations and road safety inspection. Lastly, the implementation of speed management and other channels that aim at reducing risks to VRUs can also help in the implementation of effective transport systems policies.
Conclusion
The Hawaii Department of Transport is a State department responsible for the operation and maintenance of the transport systems in the State of Hawaii. The department has three major divisions, namely; airport, highways, and harbour division. All these divisions have separate and well-defined responsibilities for the maintenance and operation of the given transport systems. The department has well laid down mission statements, policies, and structures that ensure its seamless operations. Consequently, there are several ways of communicating these policies and codes of conduct to the transport system users and stakeholders, such as through the State Constitution, the Government periodicals, magazines, as well as media advertisements. On the other hand, the implementation of these policies and codes of conduct can help governments and private sectors to achieve or reduce transport systems accidents and risks.
References
Hawaii Administrative Rules. (2017). Periodic Inspection of Vehicles: Department of Transportation . Retrieved on 3 December 2019, from https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/files/2017/12/Rules-Amending-Title-133-2-10-12-17.pdf.
Hawaii Department of Transportation. (2019). Hawaii Strategic Highway Safety Plan: 2019-2024. Retrieved on 3 December 2019, from https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/files/2019/11/SHSP-2019-booklet-1k-hr-single-pgs.pdf.
State of Hawaii. (2019). State of Hawaii Department of Transportation . Retrieved on 3 December 2019, from https://hidot.hawaii.gov/
Sustainable Urban Transport Project. (2017). Six Recommendations for Improvement of Urban Road Safety . Retrieved on 3 December 2019, from https://www.sutp.org/en/news-reader/six-recommendations-for-improvement-of-urban-road-safety.html.
