The wheels are rolling — though slowly and belatedly — toward more progressive planning for bicycle transportation on O'ahu.

So much more needs to be done, however, that it's too soon to start up the applause.

Starting with the shortcomings: It's disappointing that the city has stumbled on projects such as the North Shore bike path extension, which has come so close to fruition only to fall short due to unexpected erosion-control costs, coupled with a shortage of funds.

Abandoning the 700-foot extension, now estimated to cost $300,000, may be premature. Kaua'i County, in cooperation with the citizens' group Kaua'i Path and private donors, has made progress on the Ke Ala Hele Makalae coastal bike path project, extending from Lydgate Park in Kapa'a to Nawiliwili.

This consortium was able to leverage private land grants and volunteer work to gain federal transportation improvement funds. A similar public-private initiative is possible for a community with as many biking enthusiasts as the North Shore.

The emphasis on O'ahu has been on urban Honolulu projects, city officials said, in keeping with the 1999 Honolulu Bicycle Master Plan. And although there's some logic to the argument that the urban core is the zone with the greatest safety risk to cyclists, there have been enough biking accidents in suburban and rural areas to cement the need for islandwide improvements.

The city and state, which has its own bike plan, should cooperate toward this end.

There are many opportunities for change, and it's good to see the city taking steps in that direction. The Hannemann administration has, for example, applied for consultation on best practices for cycling facilities through the Bicycle Friendly Communities program of the League of American Bicyclists.

It is seeking about $1 million to update the master plan — an update that deserves City Council approval. And with the fixed-guideway transit planning looming, now is the time to begin thinking about bike paths along that corridor.

Voters passed a City Charter amendment last fall that seeks a higher priority for bikeway improvements. It's time that government responds to that demand.