STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1973
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MAHER -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to allowing
non-public schools to apply for school zone speed limits
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision (a) of section 1620 of the vehicle and traffic
2 law, as amended by chapter 563 of the laws of 2002, is amended to read
3 as follows:
4 (a) The department of transportation with respect to state highways
5 maintained by the state outside of cities having a population in excess
6 of one million, and highways on Indian reservations, may by order, rule
7 or regulation establish higher or lower maximum speed limits at which
8 vehicles may proceed on or along such highways than the fifty-five miles
9 per hour statutory maximum speed limit. No such maximum speed limit
10 shall be established at less than twenty-five miles per hour, except
11 that school speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen
12 miles per hour, for a distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred
13 twenty feet, on a highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of
14 a school abutting on the highway. For the purposes of this subdivision,
15 "school" shall also include non-public schools. Absence of signs
16 installed pursuant to this section shall be presumptive evidence that
17 the department of transportation has not established a higher maximum
18 speed limit than the fifty-five miles per hour statutory limit.
19 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 1622 of the vehicle and traffic law, as
20 amended by chapter 563 of the laws of 2002, is amended to read as
21 follows:
22 1. Establish maximum speed limits at which vehicles may proceed on or
23 along such highways higher or lower than the fifty-five miles per hour
24 statutory maximum speed limit. No such limit shall be established at
25 less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school speed limits
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04976-01-5
A. 1973 2
1 may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, for a
2 distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on a
3 highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abutting
4 on the highway. For the purposes of this subdivision, "school" shall
5 also include non-public schools.
6 § 3. Section 1643 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chap-
7 ter 496 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
8 § 1643. Speed limits on highways in cities and villages. The legisla-
9 tive body of any city or village with respect to highways (which term
10 for the purposes of this section shall include private roads open to
11 public motor vehicle traffic) in such city or village, other than state
12 highways maintained by the state on which the department of transporta-
13 tion shall have established higher or lower speed limits than the statu-
14 tory fifty-five miles per hour speed limit as provided in section
15 sixteen hundred twenty of this title, or on which the department of
16 transportation shall have designated that such city or village shall not
17 establish any maximum speed limit as provided in section sixteen hundred
18 twenty-four of this title, subject to the limitations imposed by section
19 sixteen hundred eighty-four of this title may by local law, ordinance,
20 order, rule or regulation establish maximum speed limits at which vehi-
21 cles may proceed within such city or village, within designated areas of
22 such city or village or on or along designated highways within such city
23 or village higher or lower than the fifty-five miles per hour maximum
24 statutory limit. No such speed limit applicable throughout such city or
25 village or within designated areas of such city or village shall be
26 established at less than twenty-five miles per hour; except that in the
27 city of Long Beach, in the county of Nassau, speed limits may be estab-
28 lished at not less than fifteen miles per hour on any portion of the
29 following highways in such city: Cleveland avenue, Harding avenue, Mitc-
30 hell avenue, Belmont avenue, Atlantic avenue, Coolidge avenue, Wilson
31 avenue and Taft avenue. No such speed limit applicable on or along
32 designated highways within such city or village shall be established at
33 less than twenty-five miles per hour, except that school speed limits
34 may be established at not less than fifteen miles per hour, for a
35 distance not to exceed one thousand three hundred twenty feet, on a
36 highway passing a school building, entrance or exit of a school abutting
37 on the highway and except that within the cities of Buffalo and Roches-
38 ter speed limits may be established at not less than fifteen miles per
39 hour for any portion of a highway within a city park. For the purposes
40 of this section, "school" shall also include non-public schools. No
41 speed limits shall be established pursuant to the provisions of this
42 section except in accordance with the engineering considerations and
43 factors for speed limits set forth in the manual and specifications for
44 a uniform system of traffic control devices maintained by the commis-
45 sioner of transportation pursuant to section sixteen hundred eighty of
46 this title, as such manual and specifications may be amended from time
47 to time, certified by a licensed professional engineer who specializes
48 in traffic operations.
49 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
