S 3882: Enacts the "area speed limits act"; relates to factors for setting area speed limits.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 3882 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 30, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. HINCHEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to area speed limits The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "area speed limits act". 3 § 2. Section 1643 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chap- 4 ter 496 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows: 5 § 1643. Speed limits on highways in cities and villages. The legisla- 6 tive body of any city or village with respect to highways (which term 7 for the purposes of this section shall include private roads open to 8 public motor vehicle traffic) in such city or village, other than state 9 highways maintained by the state on which the department of transporta- 10 tion shall have established higher or lower speed limits than the statu- 11 tory fifty-five miles per hour speed limit as provided in section 12 sixteen hundred twenty of this title, or on which the department of 13 transportation shall have designated that such city or village shall not 14 establish any maximum speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred 15 twenty-four of this title, subject to the limitations imposed by section 16 sixteen hundred eighty-four of this title may by local law, ordinance, 17 order, rule or regulation establish maximum speed limits at which vehi- 18 cles may proceed within such city or village, within designated areas of 19 such city or village or on or along designated highways within such city 20 or village higher or lower than the fifty-five miles per hour maximum 21 statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable throughout such city or 22 village or within designated areas of such city or village shall be 23 established at less than twenty-five miles per hour; except that in the 24 city of Long Beach, in the county of Nassau, speed limits may be estab- 25 lished at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00541-01-5 
 S. 3882 2 1 following highways in such city: Cleveland avenue, Harding avenue, Mitc- 2 hell avenue, Belmont avenue, Atlantic avenue, Coolidge avenue, Wilson 3 avenue and Taft avenue. No such speed limit applicable on or along 4 designated highways within such city or village shall be established at 5 less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school speed limits 6 may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, for a 7 distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on a 8 highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abutting 9 on the highway and except that within the cities of Buffalo and Roches- 10 ter speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per 11 hour for any portion of a highway within a city park. No speed limits 12 shall be established pursuant to the provisions of this section except 13 in accordance with the engineering considerations and factors for speed 14 limits set forth in either: 15 a. the standards and methods described by the national association of 16 city transportation officials (NACTO), such as a published guide for 17 evaluating speed limits; or 18 b. the manual and specifications for a uniform system of traffic 19 control devices maintained by the commissioner of transportation pursu- 20 ant to section sixteen hundred eighty of this title, as such manual and 21 specifications may be amended from time to time, certified by a licensed 22 professional engineer who specializes in traffic operations. 23 § 3. Section 1662-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by 24 chapter 496 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows: 25 § 1662-a. Speed limits in [certain] towns. The town board of any 26 [suburban] town governed pursuant to [article three-A of] the town law 27 [and the town board of any other town having a population exceeding 28 fifty thousand], with respect to highways (which term for the purposes 29 of this section shall include private roads open to public motor vehicle 30 traffic) in such towns outside any village, other than state highways 31 maintained by the state on which the department of transportation shall 32 have established higher or lower speed limits than the statutory fifty- 33 five miles per hour speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred 34 twenty of this title, or on which the department of transportation shall 35 have designated that such towns shall not establish any maximum speed 36 limit as provided in section sixteen hundred twenty-four of this title, 37 subject to the limitations imposed by section sixteen hundred eighty- 38 four of this title may by local law, ordinance, order, rule or regu- 39 lation establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed 40 within such towns, within designated areas of such towns or on or along 41 designated highways within such towns lower than the fifty-five miles 42 per hour maximum statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable 43 throughout such towns or within designated areas of such towns shall be 44 established at less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that in the 45 town of Hempstead speed limits may be established at not less than 46 fifteen miles per hour on any portion of a highway in the community 47 known as Point Lookout and on all or any portion of the following high- 48 ways in the community known as Lido Beach: Ocean Boulevard, Allevard 49 Street, Bath Street, Buxton Street, Cheltenham Street, Pinehurst Street, 50 Harrogate Street, Matlock Street, Nantwick Street, Biarritz Street, 51 Royat Street, Luchon Street, Woodhail Street, Leamington Street, Sarato- 52 ga Street, Kensington Street, and Prescott Street; provided, however, 53 that no such speed limit in such town may be established unless a major- 54 ity of the residents of each such community file a petition with the 55 town board of such town requesting such speed limit. No such speed limit 56 applicable on or along designated highways within such towns shall be 
 S. 3882 3 1 established at less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school 2 speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, 3 for a distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on 4 a highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abut- 5 ting on the highway, and except further that in the town of Hempstead 6 speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour 7 on any portion of a highway in the communities known as Point Lookout 8 and Lido Beach; provided, however, that no such speed limit in such town 9 may be established unless a majority of the residents of each such 10 community file a petition with the town board of such town requesting 11 such speed limit. No speed limits shall be established pursuant to the 12 provisions of this section except in accordance with the engineering 13 considerations and factors for speed limits set forth in either: 14 a. the standards and methods described by the national association of 15 city transportation officials (NACTO), such as a published guide for 16 evaluating speed limits; or 17 b. the manual and specifications for a uniform system of traffic 18 control devices maintained by the commissioner of transportation pursu- 19 ant to section sixteen hundred eighty of this title, as such manual and 20 specifications may be amended from time to time, certified by a licensed 21 professional engineer who specializes in traffic operations. 22 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.