Parking in NYC: New bill would restrict it at intersection crosswalks

Mayor Eric Adams' office and the City Council are negotiating pedestrian-safety legislation to prohibit parking within 20 feet of an intersection crosswalk, a law that would bring the five boroughs in line with Long Island and the rest of New York State.

The legislation, City Council Intro. 1138, is aimed at increasing visibility to reduce injuries and fatalities at intersections without the restriction, where most pedestrians are killed. The bill would require the city to add the restriction, referred to as "daylighting," to at least 1,000 intersections a year.

On Wednesday, advocates supporting the legislation placed 50 pairs of shoes on the steps of City Hall to represent the 50 children killed in traffic since Adams took office. Adams' Transportation Department opposes the bill in its current form. If enacted, the legislation would mean a loss of an estimated 300,000 parking spots citywide out of about 3 million.

The mayor's office and council are negotiating terms of the bill, including how many spots would need to be daylit annually and how far from the crosswalk parking would be prohibited, according to Jenna Laing, a spokeswoman for bill co-sponsor Councilwoman Julie Won.

At the advocates rally were those who have been injured due to a lack of daylighting and politicians of both parties who back the new rule.

"We all know there is a specific amount of real estate that we have in this city," the city’s public advocate, Jumaane Williams, said at the rally. "And the truth of the matter is that we should use everything we have to protect people. That should be the main goal: How do we protect people from dying — and adding to these shoes?" 

At least 40 states have some form of daylighting laws, "often dating to the dawn of the automobile," according to the city's Department of Transportation.

The bill has majority support of the City Council but has not been scheduled for a vote. Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has promised to enact the law. Adams spokeswoman Liz Garcia did not comment.

The bill is going through the legislative process, according to Mandela Jones, a spokesman for Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who controls the flow of legislation.

Selvena N. Brooks-Powers, chairwoman of the council’s transportation committee, said she was inspired to co-sponsor the legislation by daylighting in neighboring Nassau, which abuts her district in southeast Queens. 

"I’m on the border of Long Island, and in most of Nassau County, as you know, they have a lot of daylit streets, where you can’t park directly on a corner," she said. "And it’s been working quite fine for many years."

Most studies say that daylighting improves safety, but the Adams administration released a study — contested by the City Council for its methodology — finding that it actually would hurt safety.

By Matthew Chayes

matthew.chayes@newsday.comchayesmatthew

Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.