What's happening
The bill makes Albany's residential parking permit system permanent, expands its radius, and increases the number of available permits.
Why it matters
Makes the parking permit program a permanent fixture. rather than a temporary pilot, signaling a long-term policy shift that could affect residents’ and businesses’ decisions about transportation, property, and investment in the area.
Expands the permit-eligible area to a full one-mile radius around the Empire State Plaza. , potentially impacting more neighborhoods. This could influence housing demand, commuting patterns, and parking availability for both residents and visitors.
Increases the total number of residential permits from 2,750 to 3,500. , allowing more residents to obtain permits. This could ease parking struggles for residents but may create more competition for remaining public parking or affect traffic dynamics.
Maintains a requirement that at least 20% of permit-area spaces remain available for nonresidents (short-term parking). , which aims to balance residents’ needs with access for visitors and local businesses—potentially reducing negative impacts on commerce or community accessibility.
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Make Albany Parking Permits Permanent
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to transportation
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Make Albany Parking Permits Permanent
In Assembly Committee · Transportation · Sponsor Patricia Fahy
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7606
IN SENATE
January 29, 2020
Introduced by Sen. BRESLIN -- 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 residential parking permit system in the city of Albany; and to amend chapter
454 of the laws of 2010 amending the vehicle and traffic law relating to authorizing a pilot residential parking permit system in the city of Albany, in relation to making such provisions permanent
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 1640-m of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 454 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
§ 1640-m. [Pilot residential] Residential parking permit system in the city of Albany. 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any law to the contrary, the city of Albany may, by adoption of a local law or ordinance, provide for a residential parking permit system and fix and require the payment of fees applicable to parking within certain areas of the city or as delineated by the common council of the city of Albany in accordance with the provisions of this section.
2. Such residential parking permit system may only be established within the areas of the city of Albany described as follows: an area within [three-quarters of] a one mile radius of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza. The permitted streets within this area shall be described in a local law or ordinance adopted by the common council of the city of Albany pursuant to this section.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, no permit shall be required on streets where the adjacent properties are zoned for commercial, office and/or retail use.
4. The local law or ordinance providing for such residential parking permit system shall:
a. Set forth the specific factors which necessitate the implementation of said system and shall include, but not be limited to, findings of facts as to the existence of such traffic hazards, congestion and air and noise pollution within any such areas;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14405-02-9
S. 7606 2
b. Provide that motor vehicles registered pursuant to section four hundred four-a of this chapter shall be exempt from any permit requirement;
c. Provide the times of the day and the days of the week during which permit requirements shall be in effect;
d. Make not less than twenty percent of all spaces within the permit area or areas available to nonresidents which shall provide short-term parking of not less than ninety minutes in duration in such area or areas;
e. Make not more than [two thousand seven] three thousand five hundred [fifty] of the approximately nine thousand residential spaces within the permit area or areas available for residential parking by permit;
f. Provide the schedule of fees to be paid for residential permits; and
g. Provide that such fees shall be credited to the general fund of the city of Albany.
5. No local law or ordinance shall be adopted pursuant to this section until a public hearing thereon has been held by the common council of the city of Albany concerning the designation of the certain area or areas in which said parking permit system is to be implemented.
§ 2. Section 3 of chapter 454 of the laws of 2010 amending the vehicle and traffic law relating to authorizing a pilot residential parking permit system in the city of Albany, as amended by chapter 243 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately [and shall remain in full force and effect for a period of eight years after the implementation of the local law or ordinance adopted by the city of Albany pursuant to section 1640-m of the vehicle and traffic law as added by section two of this act at which time this act shall expire and be deemed repealed].
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the residen- tial parking permit system in the city of Albany; and to amend chapter 454 of the laws of 2010 amending the vehicle and traffic law relating to authorizing a pilot residential parking permit system in the city of Albany, in relation to making such provisions permanent
Purpose or general idea of bill
Relates to the residential parking permit system in the city of Albany
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1: (1) Permits the City of Albany to provide for a residential parking permit system.
(2) Defines the area such a residential parking permit system may apply to.
(3) Excludes streets zoned for commercial property from the residential parking permit program.
(4) Sets forth the content necessary for a local law or ordinance creat- ing such a residential parking permit system.
Section 2: Amends section 3 chapter 454 of the laws of 2010.
Section 3: Sets the effective date.
Justification
Albany's resident permit parking authorization was first adopted in 2010 as a two-year pilot program and has been extended every two years there- after. Since local implementation on February 15, 2013, as three sepa- rate geographically distinct zones, the system has met its primary objectives of increasing the availability of daytime resident parking within the permit zones and creating more short-term parking availabili- ty for locally owned neighborhood small businesses; under Albany's permit system, every resident permit designated space is also designated for short-term visitor parking of two-hours. Despite success, there continues to be challenges. The current system is limited to within a three-quarter mile radius of the Empire State Plaza which has resulted in displacement impacts in neighborhoods west of one of the zones, in addition, the limitation on total number of spaces (2,750) that may be designated permit-only limits the flexibility of the system to address impacts from new development and revitalization projects in downtown Albany. These include projects in the downtown business district, expan- sions on the SUNY Albany downtown campus and at Albany Medical Center (which has also included a significant expansion of garage capacity available to employees and visitors).
Expanding the allowable radius within which a permit system may be implemented from three-quarters of a mile of the Empire State Plaza to one-mile will enable the system to address issues on the western edge of the zone, particularly those related to SUNY and Albany Medical Center. It should be noted that the original permit proposal, prior to the 2010 adoption, did contemplate a one-mile radius. In addition, expanding the number of allowable spots to be designated by 750 will enable the system to address issues in the expansion area as well as issue related to projects in the downtown business district. Finally, the system should no longer be considered a pilot program, eliminating the sunset date on the authorizing chapter will provide certainty to the continuation of the system and ease administrative concerns regarding the need to seek biennial reauthorizations.
Prior legislative history
New Bill
Fiscal implications
To be determined
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.