Streetsblog New York City

It’s no joke — Jeff Klein is taking up the cause of NYC speed cameras in the State Senate.

Photo: Daily News

The Daily News reports that Klein, the Bronx Democrat who leads the Senate along with Republican Dean Skelos, will make the proposed speed camera demonstration program a priority in the remaining weeks of the current legislative session, which ends in June.

“I think this is a very smart approach to alleviate speeding,” Klein said of speed enforcement cameras.

“Our police do an incredible job fighting crime in the city, but they can’t be everywhere at once,” he added. “Let’s get these speed cameras in place so our city’s Finest can continue fighting crime and not writing traffic tickets.”

Authorization for a small number of speed cameras was included in the Assembly budget, but the program was opposed by Senator Marty Golden and the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association. Golden has since indicated that he is open to automated enforcement if “the technology is proven.”

Dozens of studies by corporate and public interest groups have shown that speed cameras reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities. Motorist speed was the leading single factor in city traffic deaths in 2012, contributing to 81 fatal crashes, according to NYC DOT.

Given Klein’s stature in Albany, his support should provide a significant boost to what would be NYC’s first-ever speed camera program.

“New Yorkers will applaud Senator Klein for working to bring New York City the speed cameras we need,” said Michael Murphy, spokesperson for Transportation Alternatives. “It’s time for the last few holdouts in Albany to stop standing in the way of these life-saving enforcement tools and join Senator Klein to allow speed cameras in New York City.”

Biggest Setback: After being approved by an unprecedented civic coalition, the mayor and New York City Council, congestion pricing -- the one policy measure that simultaneously reduces traffic congestion while raising money for mass transit and livable streets -- died in an Albany backroom without even a vote.

Lobbyists of the Year: Walter McCaffrey and the Committee to Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free (below). It turns out New York City government is controlled by a handful of Queens Democrats, suburban state legislators and the Automobile Club of New York.

How Not to Lobby a State Legislator: Brooklyn State Senator Martin Malave Dilan's car is towed during a congestion pricing meeting with city officials.

Most Sociopathic Elected Official: Bronx State Senator Jeff Klein nearly crushes a cyclist with his black Mercedes and then tells him, "Get your hands off my car, you f*#king a55hole." Unfortunately for Sen. Klein, this particular cyclist happens to run a pretty robust media operation.

Most Disappointing Elected Officials: During the congestion pricing debate, three State Assemblymembers stood out for their enormous potential to exert leadership and their utter inability or unwillingness to do so. Deborah Glick, Joan Millman and Hakeem Jeffries all represent districts that would have overwhelmingly benefited from New York City's congestion pricing plan. Yet, Glick could only find reasons to oppose it. Millman decided she supported it -- two hours after the proposal was killed by her Democratic Assembly colleagues. And Jeffries had the gall to demand increased subway service on the G line three weeks after helping to eliminate the revenue source that might have paid for it. If only New York City were represented in the state Assembly by an aggressive, attentive, self-aggrandizing politician like...

Elected Official of the Year: You've got to hand it to Westchester Assemblyman Richard Brodsky -- he works hard for his constituents and supporters. Unfortunately for New York City's traffic-choked neighborhoods, beleaguered transit riders and asthmatic kids, his constituents are the metropolitan region's wealthiest car commuters and his supporters own a bunch of parking garages in Manhattan. While New York City's legislators rolled over and played dead, Richard Brodsky worked his butt off to make sure that New York City's congestion pricing plan -- a plan approved by the Mayor, City Council and a state commission -- died a quiet death in the Assemly's Democratic conference. Brodsky did incredible damage to New York City in 2008 but he also showed us what effective representation in Albany might look like.

Worst Elected Official: Rochester Assemblyman and transportation committee chairman David Gantt continued his decade-long effort to deny New York City the ability to deploy automated traffic enforcement systems on its streets. He loosened up a little bit though. This year he introduced legislation that would allow counties outside of New York City to use red light cameras -- as long as they purchased the technology from a Swedish firm represented by one of his cronies. Shocking? Not really. Just another day in Albany.

Most Opinions Fewest Solutions Award: From now on, this will be called the Anthony Weiner Award.

Most Moronic Idea From Albany: State Senators Jeff Klein and Eric Adams put on their serious, fighting-for-the-people faces and proposed suspending tolls on New York City bridges and tunnels and giving drivers a $200 gas tax rebate ahead of Memorial Day weekend. Not planning to burn lots of gasoline for your summer holiday? These two have nothing for you.

A couple of days ago we relayed the remarkable story of Colin Beavan's close call with a careless motorist, which ended with the parties shaking hands. Yesterday, No Impact Man encountered another inattentive driver -- one State Senator Jeff Klein -- but this time there were no heartwarming epiphanies.

Here is Beavan's account, via an open letter to Klein: 

Though you may not know my name, you may recall that you and I met today under rather unpleasant circumstances on New York City's Broadway, just north of City Hall. You were driving your black Mercedes. I was riding a small folding bicycle and wearing a purple helmet.

To refresh your memory:

Traffic was moving rather slowly and you were heading in the downtown direction, as was I. You were in the far left lane and I was riding on the curbside of that lane, near your rear passenger door. Suddenly, you began to veer your Mercedes to the left, potentially crushing me between your car and the cars parked on the side of the road.

With nowhere to go to get out of your way, and to avoid serious injury or death, in desperation, I chose to knock on your window to let you know that I was there and that you should avoid veering further in my direction.

At this point, you brought your vehicle to an abrupt halt, not to avoid hitting me, but because you apparently needed to communicate something to me. You rolled down your window and said, "Get your hands off my car, you fucking asshole."

I said, "You were veering into me and going to crush me."

You said, "You better not touch other people's cars. You might find that touching other people's cars is more dangerous than traffic."

You may recall that Klein, along with Sen. Eric Adams, called for a suspension of bridge and tunnel tolls on holidays in order to keep as many cars as possible on city thoroughfares. Klein was also a leading opponent of congestion pricing. 

At least now the contempt we always suspected the Jeff Kleins, Richard Brodskys and Denny Farrells held for those on the other side of the windshield is, in Klein's case, out in the open. Beavan, who serves on the board of Transportation Alternatives, is calling on Klein to meet with him "to discuss transportation policy as it relates to bicycle safety, carbon emissions, the cultivation of New York City quality of life, breathable air, and traffic congestion." Beavan is also encouraging his readers to contact Klein (718-822-2049), along with Senate Democratic Leader Malcolm A. Smith (718-528-4290), in support of his request.

Please show Klein more civility than he would show you.

We posted yesterday about proposed legislation by State Senators Eric Adams and Jeff Klein to increase summer driving by suspending tolls on bridges and tunnels, thereby leaving transit riders to pay for their largess. Soon after, Adams constituent Carrie McLaren picked up the news on her neighborhood blog, Hawthorne Street. Now Adams wants to hold a kitchen cabinet meeting about the bill:

This discussion has been so extremely motivating that I would like to take it to the next level. In order to do so, however, we must move from conversation to action. I am not a talker, I am a doer. Therefore, I will open my office 572 Flatbush Avenue Brooklyn, NY (718) 284-4700, on Saturday, June 7th, at 10:00 AM for a meeting with all those who emailed and responded to this issue. I have a group of educators to assist me on educational issues, a group of medical professionals for aid on medical issues, and a group of law enforcement personnel to help me deal with public safety issues. I would like to extend this paradigm and invite those of you who have great ideas on transportation issues to join me next Saturday in an attempt to turn your suggestions into legislation. All are welcome. If you are planning to attend, please email me at my personal email at Voiceofconcern@aol.com.

We're glad to see the senator engage the public on transportation policy. Ideally it would eventually lead to discussion at the state level on the consequences of auto dependence, especially at the expense of transit funding, as this legislation would bring about.

Still, we can't help but notice that while Adams wants to give millions of drivers a pass on tolls, he is a supporter of a bill that would require a handful of current and former MTA board members to give up their own toll and fare privileges. We can only assume that the title of his press release on the subject, "The Free Ride Is Over," is offered without irony.

The bad ideas from Albany show no sign of letting up. Just when you thought the push for a state gas tax holiday had died down, State Senators Jeff Klein and Eric Adams -- of the Bronx and Brooklyn, respectively -- roll out their own version of summertime "relief" for drivers, and it's a doozy. They want to suspend tolls on bridges and tunnels in the New York City area on major holidays and, yes, give drivers a gas tax rebate of up to $200.

The money quote comes from Klein, as cited by NY1 on Saturday:

"Unfortunately, according to AAA, there'll be 360,000 fewer drivers this Memorial Day weekend, because of high tolls and our very high gas. This is something we need to address immediately," said Klein.

I know, I know -- vowing to put more traffic on city streets is beyond backwards. But please reserve judgment until you read Klein's full justification, from his office's press release:

Residents of the Zerega Avenue section of the Bronx are upset that beds for the sick will be putting a crimp in neighborhood parking stock.

The Bronx Times reports that a new four-story building on the corner of Herschell Street and Westchester Avenue, with apartments and a ground-floor medical facility, will be exempt from parking requirements.

Neighbors of Zerega were riled up over the Herschell project and fearful that another medical facility would eat up even more parking spaces in an already congested area.

[T]he good news for Zerega residents is that the Herschell facility shouldn't be opening anytime soon. According to the Department of Buildings, construction is in the very early stages.

According to data from the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, about 70 percent of households in the vicinity own at least one car. It's also the district represented by state senator and congestion pricing editorialist Jeff Klein, who believes charging 4.9 percent of his constituents to drive into Lower Manhattan "threatens to cut into the very heart which defines the culture of this city."

Not far to the southwest, the tenants association of Sound View Houses is fighting the development of a 124-space parking lot for private apartments. At a CB 9 meeting last November, according to the Daily News, "Tenants and community leaders shouted down the plan."

Though HA officials say the parking lot is underutilized, tenants insist it is sorely needed.

"If you don't get to the parking lot at a certain time, you don't get a spot," said Mary McGee, president of the tenants association.

Area residents say parking is a challenge even on a good day on streets around the development and throughout the community, which has alternate-side-of-the-street parking rules.

Nobody wants this in Sound View," said Shirlee Evans, president of the 43rd Precinct Community Council. "We're going to need more officers and firefighters."