The New York State Senate

                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  10144

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              June 17, 2014
                               ___________

Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. O'Donnell,
  Silver, Mosley,  Jacobs,  Ortiz,  Rosa,  Davila,  Simotas,  Gottfried,
  Robinson, Millman, Dinowitz, Otis, Quart, Weprin, Kavanagh, Sepulveda,
  Pichardo,  Wright,  Scarborough,  Clark, DenDekker, Benedetto, Miller,
  Heastie, Simanowitz, Glick, Weinstein, Markey, Cymbrowitz,  Rosenthal,
  Crespo,  Moya,  Rodriguez,  Hevesi,  Arroyo,  Cook,  Farrell,  Jaffee,
  Lentol, Perry, Rivera, Rozic, Steck) -- read once and referred to  the
  Committee on Transportation

AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to speed limits

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Paragraph 26 of subdivision (a)  of  section  1642  of  the
vehicle  and  traffic law is renumbered paragraph 27 and a new paragraph
26 is added to read as follows:
  26. (A) WITH RESPECT TO HIGHWAYS (WHICH TERM FOR THE PURPOSES OF  THIS
PARAGRAPH SHALL INCLUDE PRIVATE ROADS OPEN TO PUBLIC MOTOR VEHICLE TRAF-
FIC)  IN SUCH CITY, OTHER THAN STATE HIGHWAYS MAINTAINED BY THE STATE ON
WHICH THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION SHALL HAVE ESTABLISHED HIGHER  OR
LOWER  SPEED  LIMITS  THAN THE STATUTORY FIFTY-FIVE MILES PER HOUR SPEED
LIMIT AS PROVIDED IN SECTION SIXTEEN HUNDRED TWENTY OF THIS TITLE, OR ON
WHICH THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION SHALL HAVE DESIGNATED  THAT  SUCH
CITY  SHALL NOT ESTABLISH ANY MAXIMUM SPEED LIMIT AS PROVIDED IN SECTION
SIXTEEN HUNDRED TWENTY-FOUR OF THIS TITLE, SUBJECT  TO  THE  LIMITATIONS
IMPOSED BY SECTION SIXTEEN HUNDRED EIGHTY-FOUR OF THIS TITLE, ESTABLISH-
MENT  OF  MAXIMUM SPEED LIMITS AT WHICH VEHICLES MAY PROCEED WITHIN SUCH
CITY OR WITHIN DESIGNATED AREAS OF SUCH CITY HIGHER OR  LOWER  THAN  THE
FIFTY-FIVE  MILES PER HOUR MAXIMUM STATUTORY LIMIT.  NO SUCH SPEED LIMIT
APPLICABLE THROUGHOUT SUCH CITY OR WITHIN DESIGNATED AREAS OF SUCH  CITY
SHALL  BE  ESTABLISHED  AT  LESS THAN TWENTY-FIVE MILES PER HOUR, EXCEPT
THAT SCHOOL SPEED LIMITS MAY BE ESTABLISHED  AT  NO  LESS  THAN  FIFTEEN
MILES  PER  HOUR  PURSUANT  TO THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION SIXTEEN HUNDRED
FORTY-THREE OF THIS ARTICLE.
  (B) A CITY SHALL NOT LOWER A SPEED LIMIT BY MORE THAN FIVE  MILES  PER
HOUR PURSUANT TO THIS PARAGRAPH UNLESS SUCH CITY PROVIDES WRITTEN NOTICE

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD15573-03-4

A. 10144                            2

AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT TO THE COMMUNITY BOARD OR COMMUNITY BOARDS
ESTABLISHED  PURSUANT  TO  SECTION  TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED OF THE NEW YORK
CITY CHARTER WITH JURISDICTION OVER THE AREA IN WHICH  THE  LOWER  SPEED
LIMIT  SHALL  APPLY.  SUCH NOTICE MAY BE PROVIDED BY ELECTRONIC MAIL AND
SHALL BE PROVIDED SIXTY DAYS PRIOR TO THE ESTABLISHMENT  OF  SUCH  LOWER
SPEED LIMIT.
  S  2.  Paragraph  27 of subdivision (a) of section 1642 of the vehicle
and traffic law, as added by chapter 499 of the  laws  of  1999  and  as
renumbered by section one of this act, is amended to read as follows:
  27.  (a) Establishment of maximum speed limits below twenty-five miles
per hour at which motor vehicles may  proceed  on  or  along  designated
highways within such city for the explicit purpose of implementing traf-
fic  calming measures as such term is defined herein; provided, however,
that no speed limit shall be set below fifteen miles per hour nor  shall
such  speed limit be established where the traffic calming measure to be
implemented consists solely of a traffic control sign.  Establishment of
such a speed limit shall, where applicable, be in  compliance  with  the
provisions  of  sections sixteen hundred twenty-four and sixteen hundred
eighty-four of this chapter. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to
alter or affect the establishment of school speed limits pursuant to the
provisions of section sixteen hundred forty-three of this  article.  For
the  purposes  of  this paragraph, "traffic calming measures" shall mean
any physical engineering measure or measures that  reduce  the  negative
effects  of  motor vehicle use, alter driver behavior and improve condi-
tions for non-motorized street users such as pedestrians and bicyclists.
  (b) Any city establishing maximum speed limits below twenty-five miles
per hour pursuant to clause (i) of  this  subparagraph  shall  submit  a
report  to  the  governor, the temporary president of the senate and the
speaker of the assembly on or before March  first,  two  thousand  [two]
FIFTEEN  AND BIANNUALLY THEREAFTER on the results of using traffic calm-
ing measures and speed limits lower than twenty-five miles per  hour  as
authorized  by  this paragraph. THIS REPORT SHALL ALSO BE MADE AVAILABLE
TO THE PUBLIC BY SUCH CITY ON ITS WEBSITE. Such  report  shall  include,
but not be limited to the following:
  (i)  a  description  of  the designated highways where traffic calming
measures and a lower speed limit were established and
  (ii) a description of the specific traffic calming measures  used  and
the maximum speed limit established[.] AND
  (III)  A  COMPARISON  OF  THE  AGGREGATE TYPE, NUMBER, AND SEVERITY OF
ACCIDENTS REPORTED ON STREETS ON WHICH STREET CALMING MEASURES AND LOWER
SPEED LIMITS WERE IMPLEMENTED IN THE YEAR PRECEDING  THE  IMPLEMENTATION
OF  SUCH MEASURES AND POLICIES AND THE YEAR FOLLOWING THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF SUCH MEASURES AND POLICIES, TO THE EXTENT THIS INFORMATION  IS  MAIN-
TAINED BY ANY AGENCY OF THE STATE OR THE CITY.
  S  3.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
have become a law.