Bills aim to increase access to information and to improve alternative side parking

New York, April 28, 2011 – At today’s Stated meeting, the City Council will vote on legislation that will improve the City’s parking notification and street cleaning process. Originally announced in the Speaker’s State of the City Address, these two bills will make it easier to find parking, one by providing the option for some streets to have one less day of alternate side parking and another by creating an interactive online map showing exactly what the parking regulations are and where parking may be temporarily suspended due to street closures..

The Council will also vote on a package of bills that will improve pedicab regulation, safety, and traffic congestion.

IMPROVING PARKING FOR NEW YORK CITY

Originally announced in the Speaker’s State of the City Address, these two bills will make it easier to find parking, one by provide the option for some streets to have one less day of alternate side parking and another by creating an interactive online map showing exactly what the parking regulations are and where parking may be temporarily suspended due to street closures.

“It is often true that less is more, and right now New Yorkers need less burdensome parking regulations to make life a little easier,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “This legislation will ease the burden of alternate side of the street parking in all five boroughs and allow New Yorkers to access information more easily about where they can and cannot park their cars. This legislation will address one of the most common complaints we hear about from our constituents, and I want to thank my Council colleagues for being responsive to the needs of New Yorkers.”

Street closure notification

In an effort to improve communication and notification to New Yorkers, the Council will vote on a bill that will make street closing information available on line.

This bill would require the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications to post on the internet an interactive map, searchable by time, date and borough, detailing street closures. The map would also show parking regulations and temporary changes to parking regulations due to street closures. The bill would also require that appropriate contact information be provided for the sponsors of any street fair, block party or festival that result in street closures of or other obstructions of traffic.

“When the city is planning to close some streets, there’s no reason why the people most affected should be the last to know,” said Council Member Dan Garodnick, sponsor of the bill. “If there is going to be a street fair, film shoot, crane operation or other activity on your doorstep, you should — and will — be able to plan around it.”

“Sometimes it doesn’t take a major change to make life a little easier for New Yorkers,” said Council Member James Vacca, Chair of the Transportation Committee. “Council Member Garodnick’s common-sense bill will go a long way to relieving some of the headaches we know are associated with driving and parking around New York City.”

Alternative side parking

The second bill would provide the option for some streets to have one less day of alternate side parking per week for each side of the street.

Over the past two decades, the cleanliness of City streets has improved significantly. In fact, based on the Mayor’s Office of Operations “Scorecard” street cleanliness rating program, the City’s streets have reached historically clean levels and are consistently achieving those high scores. Conducting four days of street cleaning per week in some of the City’s cleanest districts – and requiring residents in those neighborhoods to move their cars so frequently – may no longer be necessary. In addition, this bill gives the communities themselves, through their community boards, the power to balance street cleaning needs and alternate side parking regulations.

In portions of consistently clean “qualifying” districts that still receive four days of street cleaning per week, this bill would allow the community board representing those districts to “opt-out” of two days of weekly street cleaning. A qualifying district is defined as a district that achieves an average cleanliness rating of 90 percent or higher for the two preceding fiscal years based on the “Scorecard” rating system.

“Author Calvin Trillin once joked that ‘You can park your car on the streets of New York, or you can have a full-time job — but you can’t possibly do both,’” said Council Member Brad Lander. “Unfortunately, for too many New Yorkers, this is all too close to reality. This new legislation would help solve this problem while still keeping our streets clean.”

DSNY could restore full street cleaning for any section where street cleaning service was reduced but which fails to achieve a cleanliness rating equal to or greater than ninety percent for three consecutive months, or if the average cleanliness rating for any such section falls below ninety percent over a period of twenty-four consecutive months.

“With this bill, residents throughout the City, including my own district, will experience greater health, public safety and environmental benefits as well as significant relief from excessive ticketing. This bill reflects the Council’s appreciation for residents’ efforts to keep our streets clean,” said Council Member Sara González, co-sponsor of the bill.

“I’m satisfied with legislation being put forth after working with the Mayor’s Office of Operations to determine their scorecard cleanliness methodology,” said Council Member Letitia James, Chairperson of the Council’s Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste. “Giving community boards with high cleanliness ratings the option to reduce street cleaning empowers communities to make decisions in the best interest of local residents. Also, if and when parking becomes easier and more available in New York City, life will be better for everyone.”

INCREASING PEDICAB SAFETY

The Council will also vote on a package of bills that will improve pedicab regulation and control traffic congestion.

These set of bills will improve our City’s pedicab regulation improve the ability of the NYPD and the DCA to enforce those regulations.

The first bill will amend the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to seizing pedicabs, and suspending and revoking pedicab registration plates and drivers’ licenses for certain violations. The bill would specifically:

Permit the seizure of a pedicab that is not equipped with a registration plate;
Require the Department of Consumer Affairs to revoke a pedicab driver’s license if the pedicab driver operates a pedicab on two occasions within one year without a valid driver’s license or with a suspended DMV license; and
Increase penalties for crucial pedicab equipment violations, including a lack of working seatbelts or working brakes.
A pedicab found operating with these equipment problems three times in one year would have its registration plate suspended for no less than one year; the pedicab would be out of use during the suspension.

“The Council passed critical safety reforms of the pedicab industry, and we will not see them undermined,” said Council Member Garodnick, Chair of the Consumer Affairs Committee. “Unlicensed drivers and pedicabs that have been written up repeatedly for safety violations should not be on the road, period.”

The second bill will to require pedicabs to be subject to parking rules such as:

no-standing zones;
no-stopping zones;
no-parking zones;
parking or standing near a fire hydrant; and
parking or standing in a cross-walk.
“The City created ‘No Parking’ zones for a reason — and not so they could be free parking for pedicabs,” said Council Member Garodnick. “When they are parked, pedicabs are more like cars than bicycles. We are changing the law to reflect that, and to give the police the power to keep these areas clear.”

The third bill will amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the permitted number of pedicab registration plates. Prior legislation created a sixty day window for pedicab owners to apply for registration plates and required applicants for pedicab registration plates to have a valid pedicab business license. Currently, there are 850 registered pedicabs and this bill would cap the number of pedicabs at 850.

“We are at our saturation point with pedicabs,” said Council Member Garodnick. “At this point, he City needs to focus on enforcing the existing rules, and creating clearer and stronger ones for this new industry. This would not be an appropriate time to open the door for new licenses.”