S01377 Summary:

BILL NOS01377
 
SAME ASSAME AS A00232
 
SPONSORFELDER
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Amd §§1110, 1111, 1113, 1116 & 1144, add §1111-g, V & T L
 
Authorizes drivers to disobey a traffic-control device or signal, after exercising reasonable care, in order to yield the right of way to an authorized emergency vehicle.
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S01377 Actions:

BILL NOS01377
 
01/11/2023REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION
01/03/2024REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION
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S01377 Committee Votes:

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S01377 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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S01377 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          1377
 
                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    January 11, 2023
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sen.  FELDER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
 
        AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to  authorizing
          an  operator of a motor vehicle to disobey a traffic-control device or
          signal in the course of yielding the right of  way  to  an  authorized
          emergency vehicle
 
          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 1110 of the vehicle and  traffic
     2  law,  as  amended by chapter 259 of the laws of 1964, is amended to read
     3  as follows:
     4    (a) Every person shall obey the instructions of any official  traffic-
     5  control  device  applicable  to him or her placed in accordance with the
     6  provisions of this chapter, unless otherwise directed by  a  traffic  or
     7  police officer, or unless otherwise authorized by section eleven hundred
     8  forty-four  of  this title, subject to the exceptions granted the driver
     9  of an authorized emergency vehicle in this title.
    10    § 2. Paragraphs 1 and 3 of subdivision (d)  of  section  1111  of  the
    11  vehicle  and  traffic  law, paragraph 1 as amended by chapter 760 of the
    12  laws of 1974 and paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 356 of  the  laws  of
    13  1971  and  as renumbered by chapter 760 of the laws of 1974, are amended
    14  to read as follows:
    15    1. Traffic, except pedestrians, facing a steady circular  red  signal,
    16  unless  to make such other movement as is permitted by other indications
    17  shown at the same time, shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but if
    18  none, then shall stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side  of
    19  the  intersection,  or  in the event there is no crosswalk, at the point
    20  nearest the intersecting roadway where the driver  has  a  view  of  the
    21  approaching  traffic  on  the  intersecting  roadway before entering the
    22  intersection and shall remain standing until an indication to proceed is

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00123-01-3

        S. 1377                             2
 
     1  shown except as provided in paragraph two  of  this  subdivision  or  as
     2  authorized by section eleven hundred forty-four of this title.
     3    3.  Traffic,  except pedestrians, facing a steady red arrow signal may
     4  not enter the intersection to make the movement indicated by such  arrow
     5  and,  unless entering the intersection to make such other movement as is
     6  permitted by other indications shown at the same time, shall stop  at  a
     7  clearly  marked  stop line, but if none, then shall stop before entering
     8  the crosswalk on the near side of the  intersection,  or  in  the  event
     9  there  is  no  crosswalk  at  the point nearest the intersecting roadway
    10  where the driver has a view of the approaching traffic on the intersect-
    11  ing roadway before entering the intersection and shall  remain  standing
    12  until  an indication to proceed is shown except as authorized by section
    13  eleven hundred forty-four of this title.
    14    § 3. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding  a  new  section
    15  1111-g to read as follows:
    16    §  1111-g.  Review of traffic-control violation; yielding right of way
    17  to an authorized emergency vehicle.  (a)  Every  municipality  which  is
    18  authorized to install and operate traffic-control signal photo violation
    19  monitoring  devices pursuant to this article, shall establish and imple-
    20  ment a program and methodology which provides  for  the  review  of  the
    21  photographs,   microphotographs,  videotape  or  other  recorded  images
    22  produced  by  its  traffic-control  signal  photo  violation  monitoring
    23  devices  to  determine  whether  any  owner  charged with a violation of
    24  subdivision (d) of section eleven hundred eleven of this article,  diso-
    25  beyed the traffic-control signal as authorized by section eleven hundred
    26  forty-four  of  this  title;  in which case, any notice of liability for
    27  such violation shall be void.
    28    (b) Every such municipality shall include  space  on  each  notice  of
    29  liability  it  issues,  in  which an owner may indicate that the alleged
    30  violation was authorized in order to  yield  the  right  of  way  to  an
    31  authorized  emergency  vehicle in accordance with section eleven hundred
    32  forty-four of this title. In each instance in which an  owner  so  indi-
    33  cates, the municipality shall cause a review to be conducted pursuant to
    34  subdivision (a) of this section.
    35    §  4.  Subdivision (a) of section 1113 of the vehicle and traffic law,
    36  as amended by chapter 722 of the laws of 2006, is  amended  to  read  as
    37  follows:
    38    (a)  Flashing red indications. Unless to make another movement permit-
    39  ted by other indications shown at the same  time  or  as  authorized  by
    40  section  eleven  hundred  forty-four  of  this  title, vehicular traffic
    41  facing a circular red signal or red arrow with rapid intermittent flash-
    42  es shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but  if  none,  then  shall
    43  stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection,
    44  or  in  the event there is no crosswalk, at the point nearest the inter-
    45  secting roadway where the driver has a view of  approaching  traffic  on
    46  the  intersecting roadway before entering the intersection and the right
    47  to proceed shall be subject to the rules applicable after making a  stop
    48  at a stop sign.
    49    §  5. The opening paragraph of section 1116 of the vehicle and traffic
    50  law, as amended by chapter 228 of the laws of 2012, is amended  to  read
    51  as follows:
    52    Whenever  traffic is controlled by lane-use control signal indications
    53  located over the individual lanes of a highway, only the  colors  green,
    54  yellow,  white  and red shall be used, and said signals shall, except as
    55  otherwise required by section eleven hundred forty-four of  this  title,
    56  indicate and apply as follows:

        S. 1377                             3
 
     1    §  6.  Subdivision (a) of section 1144 of the vehicle and traffic law,
     2  as amended by chapter 606 of the laws of 1994, is  amended  to  read  as
     3  follows:
     4    (a)  Upon  the  immediate  approach of an authorized emergency vehicle
     5  equipped with at least one lighted lamp  exhibiting  red  light  visible
     6  under normal atmospheric conditions from a distance of five hundred feet
     7  to the front of such vehicle other than a police vehicle or bicycle when
     8  operated  as  an  authorized emergency vehicle, and when audible signals
     9  are sounded from any said vehicle by siren, exhaust whistle, bell,  air-
    10  horn  or  electronic equivalent; the driver of every other vehicle shall
    11  yield the right of way and shall immediately drive to a position  paral-
    12  lel  to,  and as close as possible to the right-hand edge or curb of the
    13  roadway, or to either edge of a one-way roadway three or more  lanes  in
    14  width,  clear  of  any  intersection,  and shall stop and remain in such
    15  position until the  authorized  emergency  vehicle  has  passed,  unless
    16  otherwise  directed  by  a  police  officer.  A driver, after exercising
    17  reasonable care for all persons using the highway, may disobey any offi-
    18  cial traffic-control device or traffic-control signal, when such disobe-
    19  dience is necessary to yield the right of way to an authorized emergency
    20  vehicle.
    21    § 7. This act shall take effect on the first of January next  succeed-
    22  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
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