New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio encouraged the state Senate to preserve the city’s speed camera program, saying that it has saved lives.
The state law that granted New York City the authority to test the speed camera program to prevent speeding in school zones is set to expire tomorrow. Last month, state lawmakers failed to reach an agreement to extend it before the end of their annual session.
On Tuesday, de Blasio participated in a rally to compel the state Senate to reconvene in Albany. He demanded that state senators act on a legislation to preserve the city’s speed camera program.
NYC Speed Camera Program Said to Reduce Traffic Fatalities
During the rally, de Blasio said that the speed camera program had reduced speeding violations by 60 percent. He also said it had reduced traffic fatalities by 55 percent.
According to the mayor, New York City “just had the safest six months” in its history in terms of reducing traffic fatalities. He emphasized that “speed cameras were a big part of it.” However, the city cannot continue operating the devices because the State Senate did not act on the speed camera bill.
