Governor Kathy Hochul (D) recently proposed making New York’s Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement or AWZSE pilot program a permanent endeavor; expanding it to include bridges and tunnels overseen by New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and NYS Bridge Authority.
[Above photo by NYSDOT]
That proposal – included within the governor’s fiscal year 2026 budget draft – also includes enhanced penalties for assaults against transportation workers.
“The men and women in labor who have dedicated themselves to improving our roads and bridges risk their lives every day to ensure the safety of all drivers,” Gov. Hochul said in a statement. “By permanently driving down speeds in work zones and enhancing penalties for assaults against them, I am working to strengthen our laws to ensure these dedicated workers can make it home safe themselves.”
New York State established the AWZSE program in September 2021 as a five-year pilot program run as a joint effort by the New York State Department of Transportation and the New York State Thruway Authority to enhance ongoing efforts to slow motorists down in highway work zones.
To date, NYSDOT said more than 420,000 “Notices of Liability” have been issued statewide, with close to 78,400 repeat offenders since May 2023. And in locations where the cameras have been present more than once, fewer “Notices of Liability” are being issued, meaning that people are slowing down when cameras are present, the agency said.
NYSDOT Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez noted that the two proposals proffered by Gov. Hochul – to expand and make permanent the AWZSE program while beefing up penalties for assaults on transportation workers – will help make the work environment for highway workers much safer.
“This commonsense legislative package will provide much needed worker safety protection and peace of mind for thousands of highway workers [in New York State],” she said.
“[They] deserve the respect of the traveling public every second they are out there doing their jobs in the name of safety. I strongly believe that both pieces of legislation will prompt more New Yorkers to slow down, pay attention and think twice before threatening or physically hitting one of our workers,” the commissioner noted.
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