TSTC

[Editor's note: Streetsblog will not be publishing Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.]

A coalition of advocacy groups and government representatives called on Governor Cuomo today to dedicate state funds toward improving infrastructure for walking and biking.

After years of persistence, advocates for safer streets are closer than ever to a milestone achievement: Following the measure's approval in the Assembly, the State Senate passed a bill early Saturday to allow New York City to use cameras to catch motorists who speed near schools. A spokesperson for Andrew Cuomo has said the governor will sign the bill into law.

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.

After two crashes in six years that caused 13 fatalities and an outcry from an indignant press corps suddenly obsessed with traffic safety, the New York State Department of Transportation has turned its attention to the Bronx River Parkway.

Many of Albany's biggest transportation issues this year -- the bloated and transit-free Tappan Zee, the unfunded MTA capital plan -- will be decided by Governor Cuomo. But transportation advocates also have a slate of bills they hope to see make it through the legislature. Last year, the complete streets bill passed after a few prior attempts. Here's what's on the table for 2012.

Andrew Cuomo has been governor for all of three days, but even his small first actions could have big implications. With the state's massive deficit looming, Cuomo won't be able to avoid tough choices and big fights, and transportation is very much in the crosshairs. Bigger news could come as early as Wednesday, when Cuomo announces his emergency financial plan -- in which he could announce raids on the MTA's dedicated finances in the hundreds of millions -- but already a picture of this year's agenda is beginning to emerge.

Kate Slevin is executive director of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, and this post was originally published on TSTC's blog, Mobilizing the Region. If and when the candidates produce transportation platforms, we'll see whether they acknowledge the truth inherent in many of these proposals: You don't have to spend big on transportation to achieve big improvements in safety, sustainability, access to jobs and housing, and New Yorkers' quality of life.

New York State still lacks a complete streets law, despite the bill's overwhelming passage through the State Senate and the support of the Assembly's Transportation Committee. After a series of amendments in June, the Assembly bill now matches the stronger Senate version, but is stuck in the Ways and Means Committee, chaired by Upper Manhattan rep Herman "Denny" Farrell.