CSEA Executive Vice President Richard Bebo, CSEA Thruway Authority Local President Sean Kennedy and and CSEA Thruway Authority Local Treasurer Georgiann Mock at the event.
ALBANY — CSEA officers recently joined state, union, safety and elected officials in pushing for state legislators to make permanent the automated work zone safety enforcement program.
The Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement (AWZSE) program is the result of legislation signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul in September 2021. The legislation authorized a five-year pilot program run as a joint effort by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) and the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA) to enhance the state’s ongoing efforts to slow motorists down in work zones to make New York’s highways safer.
More than 420,000 Notices of Liability have been issued statewide, with nearly 78,400 repeat offenders since the AWZSE program launched in May 2023. In locations where the cameras have been present more than once, fewer Notices of Liability are being issued, meaning that drivers are slowing down when cameras are present.
While this is a step in the right direction, our union is urging for more action.
CSEA Executive Vice President Richard Bebo, center, stands with DOT workers at the event.
“More needs to be done to protect workers,” said CSEA Executive Vice President Richard Bebo at the event. Bebo warned that drivers in a rush, or distracted, need to show more respect for worker safety.
“We must explore all avenues to protecting road and highway workers risking their lives every day,” said CSEA Thruway Authority Local President Sean Kennedy. “The AWZSE program serves as a deterrent to distracted and reckless driving while boosting safety for workers as well as the traveling public.”
State Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez addresses the press.
In addition to her proposal to make the AWSZE permanent, the governor’s proposed state budget also includes language to enhance penalties for assaults against transportation workers, extending protections similar to those provided to many Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and retail workers. As this edition was going to press, the budget was still being finalized.
“The Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement Program is a critical tool to enhance safety in work zones across the state,” said New York State Thruway Authority Executive Director Frank G. Hoare. “We are committed to enhancing safety for all highway workers and strongly support Governor Hochul’s proposal to make this effective program permanent.”
“CSEA applauds Governor Hochul’s leadership on this issue and calls on the New York State Legislature to make the Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement program permanent,” said CSEA President Mary E. Sullivan.
— Therese Assalian
