New York S 9431: Requires instruction on work zone safety awareness as part of the pre-licensing course

Bill Text

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S09431 Summary:

BILL NOS09431 

&nbsp

SAME ASSAME AS A09268

&nbsp

SPONSORCOONEY

&nbsp

COSPNSRASHBY, ROLISON, RYAN C

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

Amd §502, V & T L

&nbsp

Requires instruction on work zone safety awareness as part of the pre-licensing course; establishes curriculum for the work zone safety component.

Go to top S09431 Actions:

BILL NOS09431 

&nbsp

03/11/2026REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION

05/19/20261ST REPORT CAL.1276

05/20/20262ND REPORT CAL.

05/21/2026ADVANCED TO THIRD READING 

06/03/2026PASSED SENATE

06/03/2026DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY

06/03/2026referred to transportation

Go to topS09431 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topS09431 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topS09431 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 9431

 IN SENATE

 March 11, 2026
 ___________

 Introduced by Sen. COONEY -- 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 requiring
 instruction on work zone safety awareness as part of the pre-licensing
 course

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Paragraph (c-2) of subdivision 4 of section 502 of the
 2 vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 585 of the laws of 2002, is
 3 amended to read as follows:
 4 (c-2) "Work Zone Safety" awareness component. (i) The commissioner
 5 shall provide in the pre-licensing course, set forth in paragraph (b) of
 6 this subdivision, a mandatory component in "Work Zone Safety" awareness
 7 education, totaling no less than thirty minutes, as a prerequisite for
 8 obtaining a license to operate a motor vehicle.
 9 (ii) The purpose of the component is to educate prospective licensees
 10 on:
 11 (A) the potential dangers to construction workers, construction equip-
 12 ment operators and operators of motor vehicles in a highway work
 13 zone[.];
 14 (B) the legal obligation to yield the right of way and exercise
 15 reasonable care in the approach of an authorized emergency vehicle, as
 16 set forth in section eleven hundred forty-four of this chapter;
 17 (C) the legal obligation to exercise due care to avoid colliding with
 18 a parked, stopped or standing authorized emergency vehicle, hazard vehi-
 19 cle, vehicle displaying a blue or green light or certain other motor
 20 vehicles, as set forth in section eleven hundred forty-four-a of this
 21 chapter; and
 22 (D) the consequences of violations, including those captured by auto-
 23 mated work zone speed enforcement systems.
 24 (iii) For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "work zone" shall
 25 include "work area" as defined by section one hundred [sixty] sixty-one
 26 of this chapter, and "restricted highway" as authorized in section
 27 sixteen hundred twenty-five of this chapter.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD14081-01-5

 S. 9431 2

 1 [(ii)] (iv) The commissioner shall establish a curriculum for the
 2 "Work Zone Safety" component which shall include but not be limited to:
 3 (A) instruction [describing the potential hazards of driving through a
 4 work zone, whether or not work, maintenance or other related
 5 construction is being undertaken therein, and information on the
 6 provisions of law relating to driving within a work zone and sanctions
 7 for violations of such provisions, including speeding in a work zone] on
 8 the identification and navigation of highway construction and mainte-
 9 nance zones;
 10 (B) education topics, including, but not limited to, signage, flagging
 11 operations, barriers, lane shifts, and variable speed limits;
 12 (C) education on the legal obligation to yield the right of way and
 13 exercise reasonable care in the approach of an authorized emergency
 14 vehicle, as set forth in section eleven hundred forty-four of this chap-
 15 ter, and penalties for noncompliance;
 16 (D) education on the legal obligation to exercise due care to avoid
 17 colliding with a parked, stopped or standing authorized emergency vehi-
 18 cle, hazard vehicle, vehicle displaying a blue or green light or certain
 19 other motor vehicles