Not another day should pass without steps being taken to boost pedestrian safety in Hawai'i.

The grievous loss of life in crosswalks and elsewhere on streets throughout the state has underscored that our roadways are dangerous places to approach inattentively.

Drivers and pedestrians alike have contributed to that reality. In the past three pedestrian accidents, drivers violated the long-standing law requiring them to stop at a crosswalk where traffic has stopped in the next lane to let the walker pass.

And pedestrians compound the danger by stepping off the curb without a thought, their attention directed elsewhere or clouded by cell phones or other distractions.

Everyone takes unwarranted chances. That's the grim truth. But the hopeful development is that police have begun dishing out the tough love by issuing citations. Even more bitter medicine may be in order: Although the crosswalk law is relatively young, lawmakers need to consider bumping up its penalties even further.

At the Capitol, legislators are pressing traffic officials to find ways to re-engineer the more perilous intersections. The original plan was to allot $1 million for statewide studies, which officials say are needed to make sure any changes in the signal timing don't cause more problems than they solve. A little tweak may give pedestrians the time they need to cross, they say, but tweak it too much and drivers tend to speed up to beat the light.

Luckily, there's a drive among lawmakers to add more money for education and immediate fixes. For example, it would help to have more crossing signals that count down the alloted time at intersections already known to be especially hazardous.

This momentum should be maintained throughout the session, bolstered by the use of federal dollars that are also available. County and state authorities must work cooperatively where their jurisdictions overlap.

Just as importantly, public education campaigns should focus on conveying this rueful fact: Hawai'i is not the slow-paced place we remember, and we can't act as if it is.