Includes emergency vehicles displaying certain flashing light color combinations in provisions of law that require operators of vehicles to exercise due care when approaching.

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S2318-2013 Actions

• Feb 25, 2013: PRINT NUMBER 2318A
• Feb 25, 2013: AMEND AND RECOMMIT TO TRANSPORTATION
• Jan 15, 2013: REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION

S2318-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S2318

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in
relation to the operation of vehicles when approaching a parked,
stopped or standing authorized emergency vehicle

PURPOSE:  This bill would expand current vehicle and traffic law to
include emergency vehicles displaying certain flashing light
combinations in provisions of law requiring operators of vehicles to
exercise due care when approaching.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Amends subdivision a of section 1144-a of the vehicle and
traffic law, as amended by chapter 458 of the laws of 2011 to require
motor vehicles to move over for an authorized emergency vehicle that
is parked, stopped or standing on the shoulder or any portion of a
highway to now include blue, white or amber lights, or a combination
of red, blue, white or amber lights.

Section 2. Establishes the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:  According to the National Safety Commission, every
year thousands of law enforcement officers and emergency responders
are injured or killed by passing vehicles on our nations roads and
highways. New York state previously passed legislation making it
mandatory for all motorists to move over to adjacent lanes when
passing emergency vehicles displaying red or a combination of red and
white flashing lights. This bill will serve to improve the overall
safety for emergency personnel by amending this law to now include all
flashing emergency lights (red, blue, white, amber or a combination of
any or all of these lights).

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2011-2012 - S.6119A/A.9144A

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:  None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect immediately.

S2318-2013 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    2318

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                              January 15, 2013
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  DeFRANCISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and
    when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation

  AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to  the  opera-
    tion  of  vehicles  when  approaching  a  parked,  stopped or standing
    authorized emergency vehicle

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1. Subdivision (a) of section 1144-a of the vehicle and traf-
  fic law, as amended by chapter 458 of the laws of 2011,  is  amended  to
  read as follows:

    (a) Every operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid
  colliding  with an authorized emergency vehicle which is parked, stopped
  or standing on the shoulder or any portion  of  such  highway  and  such
  authorized  emergency vehicle is displaying one or more red, BLUE, WHITE
  OR AMBER or ANY combination OF red [and], BLUE, white  OR  AMBER  lights
  pursuant  to the provisions of paragraph two of subdivision forty-one of
  section three hundred seventy-five of this  chapter.  For  operators  of
  motor  vehicles on parkways or controlled access highways, such due care
  shall include, but not be limited to, moving from a lane which  contains
  or  is  immediately adjacent to the shoulder where such authorized emer-
  gency vehicle displaying one or more red, BLUE, WHITE OR  AMBER  or  ANY
  combination  OF  red  [and], BLUE, white OR AMBER lights pursuant to the
  provisions of paragraph two of subdivision forty-one  of  section  three
  hundred  seventy-five  of this chapter is parked, stopped or standing to
  another lane, provided that such movement otherwise  complies  with  the
  requirements  of  this  chapter  including,  but  not  limited  to,  the
  provisions of sections eleven hundred  ten  of  this  title  and  eleven
  hundred twenty-eight of this title.
    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD04029-01-3