Brad Aaron

Following queries by Streetsblog, two state senators have pledged to address loopholes in a new state law that permit large trucks to be operated without safety mirrors, thereby endangering pedestrians and cyclists, especially children and the elderly, in New York City neighborhoods.

Advocates for safer streets are alarmed by a New York State DOT "blueprint" for capital investments that scarcely acknowledges walking or biking as modes of transportation.

After a fatal crash in her district, a state representative from Queens is again calling on Albany to double fines for speeding, but with NYPD issuing few tickets, lax traffic enforcement continues to be the biggest obstacle to safer streets.

Races for the White House and Congress aren't the only ones on the ballot tomorrow. Though as usual there aren't many competitive contests for State Senate and Assembly, voters who are interested in transportation funding and safer streets should check out a candidate survey released over the weekend by the New York Bicycling Coalition, the Straphangers Campaign, Transportation Alternatives and Tri-State Transportation Campaign.

With MAP-21 taking effect today, city and state transportation advocates are calling on Governor Cuomo and the New York State Department of Transportation to devote all of its federal bike-ped funds to walking and cycling infrastructure. The coalition of just over 100 groups is also asking that the state make available millions of dollars, allocated as part of the prior federal transportation bill, to such projects before the funds must be returned to Washington.

Legislators in Pennsylvania this year did what Albany lawmakers could not: addressed a loophole in state law that gives hit-and-run drivers an incentive to leave the scene of a serious crash. But the arduous task of getting a bill to the desk of Governor Tom Corbett exemplifies the difficulty in holding reckless motorists accountable, even when they take lives.

Albany lawmakers had several opportunities during the 2012 session to come through for transit riders, pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. They came up short on every count.

Legislation targeted at NYPD's self-imposed ban on citing motorists for careless driving has passed the State Senate transportation committee.

One of the more pernicious shortcomings of New York State's slapdash traffic justice system is its failure to keep dangerous drivers off the road. As long as repeat offenders pay their fines and don't get caught driving drunk, they can for the most part count on holding on to a drivers license, no matter how many tickets they receive, even if they cause a fatality.

At the February City Council hearing on NYPD traffic enforcement, council members and the public learned that a driver who injures a pedestrian or cyclist in New York City is not normally cited under the state vulnerable user laws unless an officer witnesses the violation. NYPD officials said department protocol prohibits precinct officers from issuing tickets under VTL 1146, the state statute that includes Hayley and Diego’s Law as well as Elle’s Law, because the citations are prone to being dismissed in court.