A motorist passing a bicyclist would need to keep at least three feet away under a bill that gets its first airing before the Honolulu City Council on Wednesday.

Mitchell Nakagawa, executive director of the Hawaii Bicycling League, said the organization tried unsuccessfully to push a similar proposal through the state Legislature earlier this year.

Nakagawa said a Department of Health survey from several years ago showed 86 percent of bicycle accidents resulting in a death involved a collision with a motorized vehicle, proving the need for cars and trucks to keep their distance.

"This begins to make a framework of rights for bicyclists," Nakagawa said, pointing out there are no laws defining how motorists should interact with bicyclists.

Bill 64-09 also spells out that "no driver or passenger of a motor vehicle shall throw or intentionally project any object or substance at a bicyclist."

Councilman Charles Djou, who introduced the measure, said similar laws involving motorists passing bicyclists already exist in other cities and states, including New Jersey, Wisconsin and Colorado.

The city this month released a draft plan that calls for 40 new miles of bike pathways by 2020, although officials were quick to announce there's no money available to implement it.

The plan estimated it would take more than $57 million for all of the improvements.

There are 66 miles of city-owned bikeways on O'ahu, and 53 more miles of bikeways on state highways and private property.

Djou said the bill he introduced provides more safety for bicyclists, and therefore encourages bicycling as a mode of transportation, without any additional costs.