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While traffic safety proponents and law enforcers are pushing for measures to clamp down on unlicensed driving, some state legislators want to keep accused drunk drivers on the road.

As reported by On Transport, Senate Bill 3627 and its companion Assembly bill would change existing law that regulates the period between a DWI charge and the processing of a provisional license application by the DMV. Provisional licenses are already available to alleged drunk drivers in cases of "extreme hardship" related to employment, medical appointments and education. The new bill would create a "hardship privilege" that would "allow operation of a noncommercial vehicle in the course of employment for the interim period before a conditional license application can be entertained." The Senate version cleared the transportation committee earlier this month by a party-line vote of 10 to 6, all Republicans against, all Democrats in favor.

"S3627 further softens the penalties for drunk drivers and sends the wrong message," says Kyle Wiswall of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. "One reason efforts to reduce DWIs were so successful is the appropriately stiff penalties and potential risk for the driver, including consequences like losing your license by immediate suspension. Backtracking like this is playing with fire."

When asked by Streetsblog if S3627 is as bad as it looks, Bronx vehicular crimes chief Joseph McCormack responded bluntly: "Yes it is."

Surprisingly, S3627 was helped along with a vote from Brooklyn Senator Dan Squadron, co-sponsor and vocal proponent of "Hayley and Diego's Law," which would establish a new careless driving offense for cases where prosecutors can't or won't pursue more serious charges against drivers who injure or kill. That bill would also define pedestrians, cyclists, road workers and others as "vulnerable users" of public thoroughfares.

Without really trying we can think of two New Yorkers who would be alive today were it not for an unlicensed or allegedly drunk driver who was behind the wheel (albeit of a commercial vehicle) while on the job. We have a message in with Squadron's office regarding his support for the drunk driving loophole.

Legislation prompted by the deaths of two children in Chinatown would mandate a safety course and community service for drivers who seriously injure or kill a pedestrian or cyclist in New York State.

The bill was announced Thursday by Senator Daniel Squadron and Assembly Member Brian Kavanagh. They were joined at a City Hall presser by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, whose staff helped write the draft, and Transportation Alternatives. The "Hayley Ng and Diego Martinez Law" would establish the offense of careless driving, and would define pedestrians, cyclists, road workers and others as "vulnerable users" of public thoroughfares.

If passed, drivers who hit people with their vehicles would face "suspension or revocation of a driver's license when the violation resulted in the serious injury or death of a vulnerable user of a public way." As we read the bill, that penalty would be suspended pending the completion of a traffic safety course and up to 60 days of community service. Failure to complete the course and community service would result in action against driving privileges and a fine of up to $10,000.

"We want everybody to stand behind this cause," said Wendy Cheung, aunt of Hayley Ng. "We don’t want this to happen to anyone else. We need justice here." 

Oregon and Illinois have recently established similar "vulnerable user" laws.

While it must be said that -- considering the severity of the senseless devastation caused by reckless drivers -- the penalties prescribed by this bill would be a far cry from true traffic justice, its adoption would nevertheless be a huge step for New York State, and could lay the foundation for tougher laws in the future. After the jump, a sobering passage from the bill summary encapsulates the current "stark reality," where drivers who kill are almost always protected by lax prosecutors and weak state laws.

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On Friday, a trio of local electeds pushed for legislation that would allow New York City to create a residential permit parking system. The Daily News and NY1 picked up the story, and if those reports have you wondering about specifics, that's because much of the plan has yet to be hammered out.

An RPP program, which would establish districts within the city where car owners must display permits to park legally in most on-street spaces, needs Albany's assent to become law. Assembly Member Joan Millman and State Senator Daniel Squadron have introduced bills in their respective chambers, with the details of the permit system left up to the city. Council Member David Yassky is carrying the banner for RPP at City Hall.

This is not the first time lawmakers have turned their attention to residential permit parking. Most recently, RPP got a serious look during last year's congestion pricing debate, when DOT devised a plan to assuage fears that car commuters would cram on-street parking spaces just outside the cordon zone.

That version of RPP included only nominal permit fees -- just enough to cover the cost of running the program. This time around, the bill's sponsors are touting permit fees as a new revenue source for the MTA. Separated from congestion pricing, however, an RPP system won't pack quite the same punch. Reports the News:

A Transportation Department spokesman said permits alone aren't enough to solve parking problems, and should be accompanied by a congestion pricing plan.

"Without such a plan, we don't believe this bill will actually solve neighborhood parking problems," said Transportation Department spokesman Seth Solomonow.

Last Tuesday, May 5, in honor of World Asthma Day and Idle-Free NYC Day, clean air advocates gathered at City Hall to mark the passage of Council Member John Liu's Intro. 631, which limits the amount of time drivers are allowed to idle near schools to one minute. Streetfilms' Robin Urban Smith files this report, which includes details of an anti-idling curriculum for fourth and seventh graders from Livable Streets Education and Asthma Free School Zone.

In related news, Senator Daniel Squadron has announced a bill calling for a statewide one minute idling restriction for "heavy-duty vehicles." And today there will be a rally in Manhattan to celebrate the adoption of Intro. 631 and to launch the West Side Clean Air Campaign, which, among other goals, aims to ensure that charter buses and car services obey the new law. The rally kicks off with a press conference at 3 p.m. at the P.S. 111 playground on 52nd St. between 9th and 10th Aves.

Earlier this month Albany approved the expansion of New York City's red light camera program. Media coverage tends not to play up the benefits of automated enforcement, so it was refreshing to see State Senator Dan Squadron, who represents Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn, put the emphasis squarely on safety at a press event in Chinatown yesterday.

Standing near the foot of the Manhattan Bridge, where more than 40 pedestrians have been injured and two killed since 1995, Squadron brought attention to the most dangerous intersections in his district. He called for DOT to install an enforcement camera at Bowery and Canal and at these "danger spots":

• The intersection of Essex and Delancey Streets (87 pedestrians injured and one killed from 1995 to 2005)
• Targeted intersections on West Street between Canal Street and the entrance to the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel (114 pedestrians injured and one killed)
• Tillary Street from Adams Street to Flatbush Avenue extension in Brooklyn (81 pedestrians injured and one killed)

DOT will have to make its selections judiciously. The city is now authorized to use 150 cameras (50 more than the old limit), with more than 12,000 signalized intersections to choose from.

In response to the crash that killed two young children on a Chinatown sidewalk yesterday, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and State Senator Daniel Squadron have released a nine-point plan to improve safety on the neighborhood's streets. From Stringer's press release:

The plan calls for "zero tolerance" traffic enforcement; the banning of trucks and buses from traversing local streets; more pedestrians safety measures such as bollards and speed bumps; and a comprehensive traffic management plan to serve residents, businesses and vehicles passing through the neighborhood.

This is a thorough plan that includes several politically daring ideas. It would alleviate the scourge of double-parking by properly pricing on-street spaces. It would expand sidewalks and accelerate the implementation of traffic-calming measures. It even calls for congestion pricing, among other traffic management techniques.

There's always the temptation to be cynical -- and some of the recommendations for community board input are tough to swallow in light of recent events -- but this is a moment that should not go to waste. While it's terrible that two children had to die to garner such attention, this horror story has nakedly exposed the systemic failures inherent in the way our streets are designed, managed, and policed. A galvanized Chinatown community backed by a handful of elected officials is a start. More New Yorkers and advocates for safer streets will have to keep up the pressure.

The first person to whom appeals should be directed has got to be Shelly Silver. The Assembly Speaker who allowed congestion pricing to die on his watch now calls for that same policy to be adopted. He's got his name in Stringer's press release and a nice direct quote calling for "the city" to implement the whole nine-point plan.

There's no doubt that the City Council, Mayor Bloomberg, and his deputies at NYPD and DOT need to follow through on this plan, and the fact that City Hall has not publicly responded to the tragedy is shameful. And don't forget the Manhattan District Attorney's office, led by 89-year-old Robert Morgenthau, which is sticking to its policy of granting negligent drivers carte blanche to kill and maim without consequence. But if the Speaker is really committed to the safety and well-being of his Chinatown constituents, much of the responsibility lies with him and his caucus. There is a clear legislative agenda to be pursued: tougher state traffic laws, to start with. We'll see if Shelly cares enough to carry the fight out of his PR office and into the statehouse.