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New York City can add 120 speed cameras in school zones under a bill approved by state lawmakers, a boost to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to eliminate pedestrian deaths in the most populous U.S. metropolis.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, a fellow Democrat, has said he supports the bill, which also allows Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island to add 125 speed cameras in school zones. Drivers caught speeding by the cameras will receive $50 tickets without points added to their license. If they don’t pay, they’ll accrue an additional $25 in fees.
“We have an obligation to protect our children’s safety,” de Blasio said in an e-mailed statement after Wednesday’s vote in Albany. “Speed cameras will serve as powerful reminders to drivers across the five boroughs that speeding will not be tolerated on our city’s streets.”
De Blasio had sought the bill as part of the state budget that was approved in March. It’s a key component to his Vision Zero plan, which seeks to stop the 250 traffic fatalities in New York each year through public outreach, enhanced police enforcement and speed cameras.
His proposal didn’t make it into the budget because it came too late in the process, Cuomo’s top aide, Larry Schwartz, said in an April 3 radio interview. New York’s fiscal year began April 1. De Blasio took office Jan. 1 after winning election in a landslide last year.
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