This year's State of the State address was full of planned commitments to transit infrastructure as well as some wins for street safety advocates courtesy of Gov. Hochul.
But there were also some questionable moves. The governor's proposals to fund an expansion of New York City's Subway Co-Response Outreach Teams from 10 to 15 raised some eyebrows.
As Streetsblog's own Nolan Hicks has previously reported, each SCOUT team, made up of an MTA police officer and clinical nurses from the New York City Department of Homeless Services, can cost more than $1 million. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has previously said that he hoped to see less police involvement in mental health crisis responses, but stopped short of calling the proposal a mistake.
"I look forward to examining this proposal further and in terms of its impact as well as its relationship to both what we have proposed, and I look forward to working with the governor to ensure that we're meeting the mental health needs of New Yorkers in crisis," Mamdani told reporters in Albany.
He was also conciliatory towards Hochul's omission of fast and free buses in her State of the State address. She had thrown frigid Albany water on the idea from the beginning despite external optimism. Optimism that Mamdani retains.
"I'll continue to advocate for this," he said. "And what gives me a real sense of hope and confidence is that the greatest accomplishments we've ever had in the fight for free buses has come through Albany in the past, and I continue to believe that it can come through Albany again."
Outside of New York City, Hochul has opened the door to autonomous ride share services across the state, and advocates are already slamming it as incongruent with safe streets and support for organized labor, as Streetsblog's Editor-in-Chief Gersh Kuntzman reported.
But state Sen. Pat Fahy (D-Albany) said she was keeping an open mind on the topic and wanted to make sure she had a full grasp on both the policy and underlying tech.
"I want to understand and hear more," Fahy said. "But I do think some of this is the future. We just have to have the right balance."
Hochul oddly also decided to make car insurance premiums part of her "affordability" agenda, but as Streetsblog's Kevin Duggan will be reporting later today, advocates are appalled that Uber's talking points about the supposed high cost of insurance appears to be about to become state policy. One way she hopes to lower premiums? Narrowing the number of people considered "seriously injured" so that payouts can be lower. Advocates are already sounding the alarm. Maybe the governor needs to have more conversations with people whose lives were irreparably changed in an instant after being hit by a car driver. Also offensive? The governor's "State of the State" book consistently referred to crashes as "accidents."
Somehow, while all of this high-level policy was being debated among state lawmakers, Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado was munching 'za out in Syracuse. He was also holding a roundtable as he mounts his primary challenge against Hochul.
Honestly, fair. Primary challenge or not, cramming into the Egg Performing Arts Center isn't always the best use of a Tuesday, especially when New York's favorite transportation reporter's ascendant football team is openly mocked by the state's leader.
In other news:
- Outside of transportation, there was an entire State of the State announcement that covered tons of policy (City & State)
- In Buffalo, the public will be briefed on bridge repairs and improvements taking place over the Kensington Expressway (The Buffalo News)
- The Village of Colonie is bearish on new work zone speed cameras that would be authorized in Hochul's executive budget proposal (the Times Union)
- The Town of Hempstead has approved new parking restrictions near the UBS Arena amid complaints of congestion from residents (News 12 Long Island)
- Long Island and New York City are on tragically different paths in the fight to reduce traffic fatalities (Newsday)
