Bill Text: NY S07738 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Authorizes cities, villages and towns to reduce the speed limit to twenty-five miles per hour.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-09 - PRINT NUMBER 7738A [S07738 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S07738-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7738--A IN SENATE February 12, 2020 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation -- commit- tee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recom- mitted to said committee 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, 23 order, rule or regulation establish a maximum speed limit of twenty-five 24 miles per hour applicable throughout such city or village, and (ii) in 25 the city of Long Beach, in the county of Nassau, speed limits may be EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13761-03-0S. 7738--A 2 1 established at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of 2 the following highways in such city: Cleveland avenue, Harding avenue, 3 Mitchell avenue, Belmont avenue, Atlantic avenue, Coolidge avenue, 4 Wilson avenue and Taft avenue. No such speed limit applicable on or 5 along designated highways within such city or village shall be estab- 6 lished at less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school speed 7 limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, for a 8 distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on a 9 highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abutting 10 on the highway and except that within the cities of Buffalo and Roches- 11 ter speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per 12 hour for any portion of a highway within a city park. 13 § 2. Section 1662-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by 14 chapter 405 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows: 15 § 1662-a. Speed limits in certain towns. The town board of any subur- 16 ban town governed pursuant to article three-A of the town law and the 17 town board of any other town having a population exceeding fifty thou- 18 sand, with respect to highways (which term for the purposes of this 19 section shall include private roads open to public motor vehicle traf- 20 fic) in such towns outside any village, other than state highways main- 21 tained by the state on which the department of transportation shall have 22 established higher or lower speed limits than the statutory fifty-five 23 miles per hour speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred twenty 24 of this title, or on which the department of transportation shall have 25 designated that such towns shall not establish any maximum speed limit 26 as provided in section sixteen hundred twenty-four of this title, 27 subject to the limitations imposed by section sixteen hundred eighty- 28 four of this title may by local law, ordinance, order, rule or regu- 29 lation establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed 30 within such towns, within designated areas of such towns or on or along 31 designated highways within such towns lower than the fifty-five miles 32 per hour maximum statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable 33 throughout such towns or within designated areas of such towns shall be 34 established at less than thirty miles per hour, except that (i) a town 35 board may by local law, ordinance, order, rule or regulation establish a 36 maximum speed limit of twenty-five miles per hour applicable throughout 37 such town and (ii) in the town of Hempstead speed limits may be estab- 38 lished at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of a high- 39 way in the community known as Point Lookout and on all or any portion of 40 the following highways in the community known as Lido Beach: Ocean 41 Boulevard, Allevard Street, Bath Street, Buxton Street, Cheltenham 42 Street, Pinehurst Street, Harrogate Street, Matlock Street, Nantwick 43 Street, Biarritz Street, Royat Street, Luchon Street, Woodhail Street, 44 Leamington Street, Saratoga Street, Kensington Street, and Prescott 45 Street; provided, however, that no such speed limit in such town may be 46 established unless a majority of the residents of each such community 47 file a petition with the town board of such town requesting such speed 48 limit. No such speed limit applicable on or along designated highways 49 within such towns shall be established at less than twenty-five miles 50 per hour, except that school speed limits may be established at not less 51 than fifteen miles per hour, for a distance not to exceed one thousand 52 three hundred twenty feet, on a highway passing a school building, 53 entrance or exit of a school abutting on the highway, and except further 54 that in the town of Hempstead speed limits may be established at not 55 less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of a highway in the 56 communities known as Point Lookout and Lido Beach; provided, however,S. 7738--A 3 1 that no such speed limit in such town may be established unless a major- 2 ity of the residents of each such community file a petition with the 3 town board of such town requesting such speed limit. 4 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 1622 of the vehicle and traffic law, as 5 amended by chapter 83 of the laws of 1969, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 2. Establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed on or 8 along all such highways lying within an area or areas as designated by a 9 description of the boundaries of such area or areas submitted by the 10 county superintendent of highways of a county and the town board of the 11 town or towns affected lower than fifty-five miles per hour statutory 12 maximum speed limit. No such limit shall be established at less than 13 [thirty] twenty-five miles per hour. 14 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
