NYC speed cameras officially cleared to operate 24/7
With the stroke of a pen, Gov. Hochul on Friday cleared the way for New York City’s traffic cameras to operate around the clock, marking a major victory for safe-street advocates who have long pressed for 24/7 enforcement against reckless drivers.
The cameras, which operate in school zones, were previously only permitted to run between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on school days.
“New Yorkers don’t just deserve safe streets at certain hours of the day,” Hochul said at the Clinton School in Manhattan after signing a bill authorizing operating the cameras 24/7. “We need to use every tool at our disposal, and far too many of our children have been killed by cars to not reauthorize and expand this lifesaving program.”
An NYPD speed camera. (Luiz C. Ribeiro/)
Mayor Adams, who attended the signing ceremony and has long advocated for expanding the city’s traffic camera program, said 24/7 enforcement will save lives and pointed to data showing that rates of speeding are significantly lower in monitored areas.
“People thought that cameras were a way of being punitive. It was not. It was a way of deterrence,” he said.
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Around-the-clock camera enforcement is expected to officially roll out in the coming months, said a city Department of Transportation spokesman. First, the department needs to expand staff and build up a structure for effectively carrying out the program, the spokesman added.
Fines will remain at $50 for camera violations, including running red lights and speeding.
The bill signed by Hochul extends the expanded traffic camera program for three years.
Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation to reauthorize and expand the use of New York City school zone speed cameras to 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (Darren McGee- Office of Governor Kathy Hochul/)
Adams’ team had initially pushed the state Legislature to permanently hand over control of the cameras to the city, but that effort failed, in part because the mayor’s transportation secretary bungled a meeting with lawmakers on the matter last month, as first reported by the Daily News.
According to data from City Hall, the speeding rate in areas with camera monitoring was 72% lower during hours of operation in December 2020. The data also show that speeding rates increased during the overnight hours when the cameras were off.
The city has seen a rash of horrific traffic deaths in recent months, with fatalities spiking by 44% in the first three months of 2022 as compared to the same period last year, according to Department of Transportation data.
Amy Cohen, co-founder of the advocacy group Families for Safe Streets, lost her 12-year-old son to traffic violence in 2013. She praised Hochul for enacting the 24/7 camera enforcement bill.
“Losing a loved one to horrific traffic violence is something no other New York family should go through. The pain is indescribable,” Cohen said. “That is why we work tirelessly to enact policies that will end traffic violence. 24/7 speed cameras will prevent more innocent lives lost on our street.”
With Clayton Guse
