Complete Streets in NY State
City of Austin, via Planetizen.
During the 2022 session, the New York State legislature passed a Complete Streets bill that increases state funding where the municipality agrees to fund a Complete Street design feature. Currently, the bill sits unsigned on Governor Hochul’s desk. Safe streets advocates, including the New York State Safe Streets coalition that Open Plans is a member of, are eager to have this bill signed - and to count the governor as a committed ally for Complete Streets.
Good design is our most powerful tool to make our streets safer. On Complete Streets, motorists share space with pedestrians, cyclists, children, elderly and people with disabilities. These streets employ a variety of approaches based on community context, and consider sidewalks, bike and bus lanes, public transit stops, crosswalks, medians, accessible pedestrian signals, curb extensions, traffic calming, and landscape treatments. Streets using these treatments are safer, more equitable and more sustainable. They see fewer vehicle-related crashes and less risk for pedestrians and micromobility users. They also promote walking and biking by providing safer and more accommodating spaces for those modes of transportation.
New York State does have a Complete Streets law on the books, which was signed in 2011. But it’s over a decade old now and sorely in need of an update. The unsigned bill will give municipalities across the state a versatile toolkit for applying proven street design to their own streets and sidewalks - but it has stalled. The Governor’s main objection seems to be budgetary concerns. But budgets are always moral documents and if the state has to choose between Complete Streets that save lives or more highways that cause climate change, more speed and fatalities - well, we hope the Governor is on the side of saving lives and our planet.
We not only urgently want this bill signed before time runs out at the end of the year, but we’ll continue to support two new bills that incentivize Complete Streets both at the application phase and during maintenance. Working together, the three proposed Complete Streets bills would improve on the 2011 law by increasing funding and lifting some red tape on implementation. Most importantly, we want all our state officials to understand how transformative and crucial Complete Streets are to the safety of New Yorkers everywhere.
To that end, we’ll be submitting testimony for a hearing on Complete Streets in Albany on Monday, October 3. Invited Safe streets advocates from across New York State will have the opportunity to illustrate how important it is that the Governor sign the passed Complete Streets bill immediately. As traffic injuries and fatalities continue to increase, there’s not a moment to lose. And we need all our elected officials committed to prioritizing these life-saving measures.
Sara Lind is the Chief Strategy Officer at Open Plans. Learn more about Open Plans’ work with safe streets here.