Tuesday Headlines: Roc And A Hard Place Edition

Most Rochester residents don’t support automated traffic enforcement, but a majority want speed cameras in school zones, according to a report released this month. Fifty-seven percent of respondents oppose automated enforcement overall, versus 37 percent in favor. Yet 61 percent backed school zone speed cameras and 77 percent backed school bus stop-arm cameras.

The findings come as Rochester, which averaged 9.6 traffic deaths per 100,000 residents annually from 2020 to 2024, grapples with a crash rate higher than Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany or Yonkers. “We cannot look at a crisis like this and try to please everyone,” Council Member Mitch Gruber, co-chair of the city’s Vision Zero Task Force, said at a presentation of the findings.

Residents also remember the city’s red-light cameras, shut off in 2016 amid complaints they burdened poor neighborhoods. Those who supported cameras this time want safeguards, with 83 percent demanding a clear appeals process.

School zone speed cameras need their own state authorization, which Rochester hasn’t requested, but the city thinks that won’t be an issue. Read more here.

Elsewhere in the Empire State:

• Bruce Blakeman, the Republican nominee for governor, has increasingly embraced President Trump’s political style and agenda, a shift that may energize the GOP base but complicates his appeal to New York voters wary of the president. (City & State)
• Former state Assembly Member Ari Espinal has been charged with allegedly stealing union funds, according to federal prosecutors; the case adds a criminal investigation to the former lawmaker’s post-Assembly career. (Politico New York)
• An MTA watchdog report found severe disrepair at subway maintenance facilities, including roofs with holes that let vegetation grow through and water leak onto electrical equipment, raising concerns about worker safety and potential service disruptions. (Gothamist)
• The man fatally shot on a Midtown subway platform was identified as Darrel Rodriguez, a 26-year-old Bronx security guard who was heading home from work when he was killed at the 53rd Street and Seventh Avenue station. (The New York Times)
• Nasssau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who is the Republican nominee for governor, criticized Gov. Hochul for not signing a tax-relief bill for volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers, but Hochul had signed the legislation two days before his attack. (amNewYork)
• Blakeman rode the subway while criticizing Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over transit violence, proposing more police, additional conductors, improved lighting and a ban on face coverings in the subway. Hochul’s campaign defended its record on transit safety. (The New York Post)
• A 43-year-old Poughkeepsie woman was charged with felony aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child passenger after state police stopped her in Rhinebeck with a 15-year-old in the vehicle; police said a breath test registered a blood alcohol concentration of 0.09 percent. (The Daily Catch)
• State lawmakers have pushed back against Albany’s proposed commuter tax on people who live outside the city but work there, questioning its potential impact on workers and businesses as Albany grapples with a budget shortfall. (The Times Union)
• Republican Assemblymember Matt Simpson is seeking reelection in the 114th Assembly District against Democrat John Gunther, in a race covering Essex and Warren counties and parts of Saratoga, Washington and Fulton counties. (North Country Public Radio)
• A political mailer from the Clay Republican Party has drawn criticism for appearing to use the Onondaga County Board of Elections’ name and trusted-government image to deliver partisan messaging, prompting questions about whether the mailer was misleading or an honest mistake. (Syracuse.com)
• Three candidates are competing for the open 123rd Assembly District seat after incumbent Democrat Donna Lupardo decided not to run again. (Press & Sun-Bulletin)
• The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office is promoting school-bus safety, emphasizing precautions for motorists and the importance of protecting students as they board and exit buses. (Finger Lakes Times)
• Ontario County’s Board of Supervisors voted to oppose President Trump’s proposal to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America,” joining other local governments that have rejected the change. (Democrat and Chronicle)