ALBANY – Hudson Valley State Senator Rob Rolison (R, Poughkeepsie) has urged Governor Kathy Hochul to convene a special session of the state legislature to address the rise in motor vehicle fatalities across the state.
Rolison cited a report issued by Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli that documented the rise in Empire State automobile fatalities since 2019, including the highest number of deaths in a decade in 2022.
Putnam County has witnessed its share of serious crashes in recent weeks including a motorcycle fatal on Route 301 in Carmel, a fatal crash on Dingle Ridge Road in Southeast, a motorcycle fatality in Putnam Valley along with several other serious mishaps in Philipstown, Mahopac and Southeast allegedly caused by reckless driving.
Rolison has drafted a bill that would provide discretion to prosecutors and judges to charge a suspect with aggravated reckless driving, a felony. Individuals driving uninsured or unregistered cars, trucks, motorcycles or ATVs, or guilty of three reckless-driving violations, would face forfeiture of their vehicles and other penalties.
“If our roads aren’t safe, New Yorkers can’t feel secure about traveling around our region and state,” Rolison said. “Now that the state comptroller has identified and documented what every commuting motorist experiences on a near-daily basis now, it’s up to the state legislature to do something about it before more lives are lost to reckless driving and individuals who willfully ignore our laws. This is a bipartisan opportunity that I would encourage the governor to take.”
The lawmaker said reckless drivers “are fast turning our roads into speedways. This legislation is necessary because impaired and/or reckless drivers, including marijuana users, pose a threat to others each time they get behind the wheel.”
