Speeding through a construction zone on MTA bridges and tunnels will soon mean automatic fines mailed to more drivers, with the expansion of a state speed camera program. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Albany lawmakers agreed in May to expand a pilot program targeting construction zones at the MTA’s bridges and tunnels, which handle more than 329 million vehicle crossings each year.
New York will charge drivers who exceed the roughly 30 mph speed limit on city crossings – including the Queens Midtown Tunnel, the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge – a $50 fine for their first violation. The second comes with a $75 fee and a $100 fine for the third and any subsequent infractions within an 18-month period of the first one, according to the state budget agreement.
Although the law expanding the program took effect immediately; the state’s Department of Transportation did not share a timeline of when the cameras will be in place. Called the Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement initiative, the program was signed into law in September 2021. The program began issuing fines in May 2023. The state has mailed more than 425,000 tickets to motorists for speeding in work zones, including to more than 38,000 repeat offenders.
Source: Crain’s New York Business
