Bill Text: NY A01007 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes cities, villages and towns to reduce the speed limit to twenty-five miles per hour.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced) 2021-01-07 - referred to transportation [A01007 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A01007-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1007 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 7, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, DINOWITZ, JACOBSON, WOERNER, THIELE, WALCZYK, MORINELLO, BYRNES, GOTTFRIED, McDONOUGH, RA, SMULLEN, FAHY -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to authorizing cities, villages and towns to reduce the speed limit to twenty-five miles per hour The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 1643 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by 2 chapter 412 of the laws 2012, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 1643. Speed limits on highways in cities and villages. The legisla- 4 tive body of any city or village with respect to highways (which term 5 for the purposes of this section shall include private roads open to 6 public motor vehicle traffic) in such city or village, other than state 7 highways maintained by the state on which the department of transporta- 8 tion shall have established higher or lower speed limits than the statu- 9 tory fifty-five miles per hour speed limit as provided in section 10 sixteen hundred twenty of this title, or on which the department of 11 transportation shall have designated that such city or village shall not 12 establish any maximum speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred 13 twenty-four of this title, subject to the limitations imposed by section 14 sixteen hundred eighty-four of this title may by local law, ordinance, 15 order, rule or regulation establish maximum speed limits at which vehi- 16 cles may proceed within such city or village, within designated areas of 17 such city or village or on or along designated highways within such city 18 or village higher or lower than the fifty-five miles per hour maximum 19 statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable throughout such city or 20 village or within designated areas of such city or village shall be 21 established at less than thirty miles per hour; except that (i) the 22 legislative body of any city or village may by local law, ordinance, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02142-01-1A. 1007 2 1 order, rule or regulation establish a maximum speed limit of twenty-five 2 miles per hour applicable throughout such city or village, and (ii) in 3 the city of Long Beach, in the county of Nassau, speed limits may be 4 established at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of 5 the following highways in such city: Cleveland avenue, Harding avenue, 6 Mitchell avenue, Belmont avenue, Atlantic avenue, Coolidge avenue, 7 Wilson avenue and Taft avenue. No such speed limit applicable on or 8 along designated highways within such city or village shall be estab- 9 lished at less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school speed 10 limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, for a 11 distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on a 12 highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abutting 13 on the highway and except that within the cities of Buffalo and Roches- 14 ter speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per 15 hour for any portion of a highway within a city park. 16 § 2. Section 1662-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by 17 chapter 405 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows: 18 § 1662-a. Speed limits in certain towns. The town board of any subur- 19 ban town governed pursuant to article three-A of the town law and the 20 town board of any other town having a population exceeding fifty thou- 21 sand, with respect to highways (which term for the purposes of this 22 section shall include private roads open to public motor vehicle traf- 23 fic) in such towns outside any village, other than state highways main- 24 tained by the state on which the department of transportation shall have 25 established higher or lower speed limits than the statutory fifty-five 26 miles per hour speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred twenty 27 of this title, or on which the department of transportation shall have 28 designated that such towns shall not establish any maximum speed limit 29 as provided in section sixteen hundred twenty-four of this title, 30 subject to the limitations imposed by section sixteen hundred eighty- 31 four of this title may by local law, ordinance, order, rule or regu- 32 lation establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed 33 within such towns, within designated areas of such towns or on or along 34 designated highways within such towns lower than the fifty-five miles 35 per hour maximum statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable 36 throughout such towns or within designated areas of such towns shall be 37 established at less than thirty miles per hour, except that (i) a town 38 board may by local law, ordinance, order, rule or regulation establish a 39 maximum speed limit of twenty-five miles per hour applicable throughout 40 such town and (ii) in the town of Hempstead speed limits may be estab- 41 lished at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of a high- 42 way in the community known as Point Lookout and on all or any portion of 43 the following highways in the community known as Lido Beach: Ocean 44 Boulevard, Allevard Street, Bath Street, Buxton Street, Cheltenham 45 Street, Pinehurst Street, Harrogate Street, Matlock Street, Nantwick 46 Street, Biarritz Street, Royat Street, Luchon Street, Woodhail Street, 47 Leamington Street, Saratoga Street, Kensington Street, and Prescott 48 Street; provided, however, that no such speed limit in such town may be 49 established unless a majority of the residents of each such community 50 file a petition with the town board of such town requesting such speed 51 limit. No such speed limit applicable on or along designated highways 52 within such towns shall be established at less than twenty-five miles 53 per hour, except that school speed limits may be established at not less 54 than fifteen miles per hour, for a distance not to exceed one thousand 55 three hundred twenty feet, on a highway passing a school building, 56 entrance or exit of a school abutting on the highway, and except furtherA. 1007 3 1 that in the town of Hempstead speed limits may be established at not 2 less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of a highway in the 3 communities known as Point Lookout and Lido Beach; provided, however, 4 that no such speed limit in such town may be established unless a major- 5 ity of the residents of each such community file a petition with the 6 town board of such town requesting such speed limit. 7 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 1622 of the vehicle and traffic law, as 8 amended by chapter 83 of the laws of 1969, is amended to read as 9 follows: 10 2. Establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed on or 11 along all such highways lying within an area or areas as designated by a 12 description of the boundaries of such area or areas submitted by the 13 county superintendent of highways of a county and the town board of the 14 town or towns affected lower than fifty-five miles per hour statutory 15 maximum speed limit. No such limit shall be established at less than 16 [thirty] twenty-five miles per hour. 17 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
