Senate Bill S1375

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1375
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 9, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SERRANO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Tourism,
   Parks and Recreation
 
 AN ACT to amend the parks, recreation and historic preservation law,  in
   relation  to  directing  the  office of parks, recreation and historic
   preservation to promulgate uniform design standards and manage  appli-
   cations for greenway trails
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 7-a of section 3.09 of  the  parks,  recreation
 and  historic  preservation  law, as added by chapter 999 of the laws of
 1973, is amended to read as follows:
   7-a. (A) Promulgate a comprehensive plan for the  establishment  of  a
 state-wide  trails system. For the purposes of this subdivision "trails"
 shall include footpaths, bike ways,  snowmobile  trails,  horse  trails,
 cross  country  ski  trails,  roads and other rights-of-way suitable for
 hiking, strolling, cycling, horseback riding, skiing and other means  of
 motorized  and  non-motorized travel for recreational purposes and shall
 include combinations and systems of  trails,  including  connecting  and
 side  trails,  and  trails leading to scenic and recreational areas. The
 commissioner, with the approval of the  director  of  the  budget,  may,
 within  the  appropriations  made available by the legislature, purchase
 such abandoned railroad rights-of-way as can be used in  the  comprehen-
 sive  plan, and make improvements where necessary, in order to make them
 suitable and available for use as trails.
   (B) PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS ESTABLISHING DESIGN STANDARDS FOR
 GREENWAY TRAILS. SUCH DESIGN STANDARDS  SHALL  IDENTIFY  BEST  PRACTICES
 FOR,  INCLUDING  BUT  NOT  LIMITED TO, TRAIL DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS, ROAD
 CROSSING TREATMENTS, AND BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES.  SUCH DESIGN
 STANDARDS SHALL BE USED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT POSSIBLE TO GUIDE  DESIGN
 FOR  ANY  MULTIPLE  USE  BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES, RAIL TRAILS,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03339-01-5
              

 S. 1375                             2
 
 CANALWAY TRAILS, OR OTHER GREENWAY TRAILS, AS SHALL BE DETERMINED BY THE
 OFFICE, WHICH IS ESTABLISHED OR IMPROVED ON STATE LAND OR USING STATE OR
 FEDERAL FUNDING.
   (C)  BE  EMPOWERED  TO  DENY NEW GREENWAY TRAIL APPLICATIONS UNDER THE
 JURISDICTION OF THE OFFICE, FOR FAILING TO CONFORM  WITH  THE  STANDARDS
 ESTABLISHED  UNDER  PARAGRAPH  (A)  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION  AND STATE THE
 REASONS FOR SUCH DENIAL TO BE ENUMERATED WITH  A  WRITTEN  JUSTIFICATION
 WHICH SHALL BE POSTED PUBLICLY ONLINE.
   (D)  BE  EMPOWERED TO DENY APPLICATIONS FOR THE EXPANSION OR MODIFICA-
 TION OF GREENWAY TRAILS UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE OFFICE, FOR  FAIL-
 ING  TO  CONFORM  WITH  THE STANDARDS ESTABLISHED UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF
 THIS SUBDIVISION AND STATE THE REASONS FOR SUCH DENIAL TO BE  ENUMERATED
 WITH A WRITTEN JUSTIFICATION WHICH SHALL BE POSTED PUBLICLY ONLINE.
   (E)  BE  EMPOWERED  TO  DETERMINE  THAT, FOR ANY NEW TRAIL ESTABLISHED
 UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE OFFICE OR FOR ANY EXPANSION  OR  MODIFICA-
 TION OF EXISTING TRAILS UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE OFFICE, CONFORMITY
 TO  THE  STANDARDS  ESTABLISHED UNDER THIS SECTION IS INAPPROPRIATE, FOR
 REASONS WHICH SHALL BE ENUMERATED IN A WRITTEN JUSTIFICATION TO BE POST-
 ED PUBLICLY ONLINE.
   (F) DESIGN STANDARDS ISSUED UNDER PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION OR
 ANY APPROVAL OR DENIAL OF APPLICATIONS UNDER PARAGRAPHS (C) THROUGH  (E)
 OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION  SHALL  NOT HAVE THE EFFECT OF REQUIRING ANY ADDI-
 TIONAL USES OR DISALLOWING ANY EXISTING USES ON ANY GREENWAY TRAIL.
   § 2.  Section 1.03 of the parks, recreation and historic  preservation
 law is amended by adding a new subdivision 19 to read as follows:
   19.  "GREENWAY  TRAIL" SHALL MEAN A SHARED-USE PATH, INCLUDING BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO ANY TRAIL LOCATED ON  FORMER  RAILROAD  RIGHTS-OF-WAY,  ALONG
 UTILITY  CORRIDORS,  OR  ALONG  FORMER CANAL TOWPATHS, THAT IS SEPARATED
 FROM ROADWAYS AND VEHICLE TRAFFIC, AND INCLUDES A MINIMUM TREAD WIDTH OF
 SIX FEET, A RELATIVELY FLAT, GRADED SURFACE AND/OR IMPROVED  TREAD,  AND
 WHICH CAN BE USED FOR NON-MOTORIZED TRANSPORTATION AND RECREATION.
   §  3.    This  act  shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day
 after it shall have become a law.