S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5623
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. SIMON, GRAY, DeSTEFANO -- read once and referred
   to the Committee on Transportation
 
 AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to enacting the
   "New York State pedestrian right-of-way protection act"
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "New York State pedestrian right-of-way protection act".
   § 2. Legislative purpose. It is the purpose of  this  act  to  enhance
 pedestrian  safety and ensure Americans with Disabilities Act compliance
 by prohibiting the parking of vehicles in pedestrian right-of-ways.
   § 3. Section 125 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by section
 3 of part XX of chapter 58 of the laws of 2020, is amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   § 125. Motor  vehicles. Every vehicle operated or driven upon a public
 highway which is propelled by  any  power  other  than  muscular  power,
 except  (a)  electrically-driven mobility assistance devices operated or
 driven by a person with a disability, (a-1) electric personal  assistive
 mobility  devices  operated  outside  a  city  with  a population of one
 million or more, (b) vehicles which run only upon rails or  tracks,  (c)
 snowmobiles  as  defined in article forty-seven of this chapter, (d) all
 terrain vehicles as defined in article forty-eight-B  of  this  chapter,
 (e)  bicycles  with  electric  assist  as defined in section one hundred
 two-c of this article, and (f) electric scooters as defined  in  section
 one  hundred  fourteen-e of this article. For the purposes of title four
 of this chapter, the term motor vehicle shall exclude  fire  and  police
 vehicles other than ambulances. For the purposes of titles four and five
 of this chapter the term motor vehicles shall exclude farm type tractors
 and   all  terrain  type  vehicles  used  exclusively  for  agricultural
 purposes, or for snow plowing, other  than  for  hire,  farm  equipment,
 including  self-propelled machines used exclusively in growing, harvest-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06680-01-5
              

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 ing or handling farm produce, and self-propelled caterpillar  or  crawl-
 er-type  equipment  while  being  operated on the contract site. FOR THE
 PURPOSES OF SUBPARAGRAPH M  OF  PARAGRAPH  ONE  OF  SUBDIVISION  (A)  OF
 SECTION  ONE  THOUSAND  TWO  HUNDRED TWO OF THIS CHAPTER, THE TERM MOTOR
 VEHICLE SHALL NOT INCLUDE ANY MOTOR VEHICLE WEIGHING TWO HUNDRED  POUNDS
 OR LESS.
   §  4.  The  vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section
 162 to read as follows:
   § 162. PEDESTRIAN RIGHT-OF-WAY. A DESIGNATED PATH OR AREA  EXCLUSIVELY
 DESIGNED  FOR  PEDESTRIAN USE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO RAISED SIDE-
 WALKS AND PEDESTRIAN ZONES, WITHOUT NECESSARILY BEING  PHYSICALLY  SEPA-
 RATED FROM VEHICULAR TRAFFIC.
   §  5. Subparagraph l of paragraph 1 of subdivision (a) of section 1202
 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chapter 206 of the laws of
 2020, is amended and a new subparagraph m is added to read as follows:
   l. In a space designated as provided  in  this  subparagraph  for  the
 exclusive purpose of charging an electric vehicle at an electric vehicle
 charging  station,  unless such vehicle is an electric vehicle connected
 to such charging station. Provided,  however,  that  an  electric  motor
 vehicle  disconnected  from the electric vehicle charging station for no
 more than thirty continuous minutes while stopped, standing or parked in
 such designated space shall not be in violation  of  this  subparagraph.
 Parking spaces designated for the exclusive purpose of charging an elec-
 tric  vehicle  at  an electric vehicle charging station shall be clearly
 identified, and such designation shall include  conspicuous  and  perma-
 nently  installed  above  grade signs which shall be positioned from the
 parking space surface at a height of not less than five  feet  nor  more
 than  seven  feet  and  which identify such space as an electric vehicle
 charging station, indicate that such space is only for electric  vehicle
 charging  and  include any day or time restrictions. For the purposes of
 this subparagraph, the term "electric vehicle" shall mean a motor  vehi-
 cle  that is propelled at least in part by an electric motor and associ-
 ated power electronics which provide acceleration torque  to  the  drive
 wheels  sometime  during  normal vehicle operation, and that draws elec-
 tricity from a battery or hydrogen fuel cell that is  capable  of  being
 recharged from an external source of electricity, such that the external
 source of electricity cannot be connected to the vehicle while the vehi-
 cle is in motion, and the term "electric vehicle charging station" shall
 mean  the  equipment  needed  to convey electric power from the electric
 grid or another power source to an onboard motor vehicle energy  storage
 system[.]; OR
   M. IN A PEDESTRIAN RIGHT-OF-WAY, UNLESS SUCH MOTOR VEHICLE IS AN EMER-
 GENCY  VEHICLE  ENGAGED  IN ITS OFFICIAL DUTIES OR A VEHICLE PARKING FOR
 THE PURPOSE OF MAINTENANCE OR CONSTRUCTION WHICH HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED  BY
 THE  APPROPRIATE  LOCAL  AUTHORITIES. ANY VIOLATION OF THIS SUBPARAGRAPH
 SHALL BE AN UNCLASSIFIED MISDEMEANOR.
   § 6. Section 1801 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by  adding
 a new subdivision 3 to read as follows:
   3. EVERY PERSON CONVICTED OF A MISDEMEANOR FOR A VIOLATION OF SUBPARA-
 GRAPH  M  OF PARAGRAPH   ONE OF SUBDIVISION (A) OF SECTION  ONE THOUSAND
 TWO HUNDRED TWO OF THIS CHAPTER SHALL FOR A FIRST CONVICTION THEREOF  BE
 PUNISHED  BY  A  FINE  OF  NOT  MORE  THAN  FIVE  HUNDRED DOLLARS; FOR A
 CONVICTION OF A SECOND VIOLATION, BOTH OF WHICH WERE COMMITTED WITHIN  A
 PERIOD OF TWENTY-FOUR MONTHS, SUCH PERSON SHALL BE PUNISHED BY A FINE OF
 NOT  MORE  THAN  ONE  THOUSAND  DOLLARS; UPON A CONVICTION OF A THIRD OR
 SUBSEQUENT VIOLATION, ALL OF WHICH WERE COMMITTED  WITHIN  A  PERIOD  OF
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 TWENTY-FOUR  MONTHS, SUCH PERSON SHALL BE PUNISHED BY A FINE OF NOT MORE
 THAN TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS.
   § 7. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
 sion,  section,  or  part  of this law or the application thereof to any
 person or circumstance shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of  competent
 jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or
 invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation
 to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section, or part there-
 of directly involved in the controversy in  which  such  judgment  shall
 have been rendered.
   §  8.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary  for  the  implementation  of
 this  act  on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
 on or before such effective date.