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Assembly Passes One-House Safe Driving Bill
While the New York State Senate scrambles to salvage some dignity from the current legislative session, the Assembly has busied itself with a flurry of one-house lawmaking. Last week, for instance, the chamber passed a safe driving bill aimed primarily at teen drivers, sponsored by transportation committee chair David Gantt. It includes some good stuff, like extending the number of practice hours that must be completed before taking the driver's license exam. And it would create a new traffic infraction to penalize driving while texting or using any handheld electronic device, no matter how old you are. The bill cleared the Assembly in a 146-0 vote.
June 25, 2009
If Texting-While-Driving Ban Fails, Blame Albany’s “Democracy of One”
Last week Streetsblog followed up on the stalled progress of a statewide texting-while-driving ban, a bill that appears to be going nowhere even though almost everyone on the Assembly transportation committee supports it, according to Brooklyn representative Felix Ortiz.
June 1, 2009
Assembly Transpo Chair LOLZ @ Txting-While-Driving Ban
When reports surfaced last week that Assembly Member David Gantt intends to block a statewide texting-while-driving ban (again), we were curious: What does the chairman of the transportation committee have against a common-sense measure to discourage dangerous driving habits? After placing a call to Gantt's office yesterday morning, we're still waiting to hear back. The Rochester representative is famously circumspect when it comes to explaining his decisions, so the lack of a timely reply came as no surprise. After all, he doesn't return calls to members of his own committee, either.
May 27, 2009
AAA Guy: Don’t Bother Drivers With What, or Whom, They Run Over
In what seems like a potential victory for common sense, state lawmakers are considering a bill that would require New York motorists to stop and see what they hit after they collide with something.
April 21, 2009
Red Light Cam Expansion Gets All Clear From Gantt
New York City's red light cam program is on track to expand by 50 percent, pending legislation currently winding through Albany. Since 1994, the city has run a red light camera "demonstration program" -- with proven safety benefits -- which has to be renewed this year to continue. The bill
would extend that program for five years and increase the number of
cameras from 100 to 150 (here's the legalese).
April 2, 2009
Stringer, Squadron, and Silver Call for Safer Chinatown Streets
In response to the crash that killed two young children on a Chinatown sidewalk yesterday, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and State Senator Daniel Squadron have released a nine-point plan to improve safety on the neighborhood's streets. From Stringer's press release:
January 23, 2009
TSTC Names the Most Dangerous Roads for Pedestrians
A new report from the Tri-State Transportation Campaign names five New York City streets among the region's 10 most dangerous roads for pedestrians, based on the number of fatalities from 2005 to 2007. Making the list were:
October 28, 2008