HARTFORD – Today, State Senator Christine Cohen, Chair of the Transportation Committee, led passage of legislation created in cooperation with the Department of Transportation (DOT) that provides reduced bus fare for students, veterans and seniors, increases safety on our roads, invests in transportation infrastructure and creates protections for Uber and Lyft drivers.
According to preliminary data from Connecticut Crash Data Repository, 2024 was one of Connecticut’s deadliest years for road fatalities. In 2022, 366 people were killed in crashes, and of those, 148 people were killed in speeding-related crashes, and 130 killed in alcohol-impaired crashes. Connecticut State Police and DOT have been cracking down on speeding, but additional safety tools are needed. This legislation strengthens laws with respect to reckless and distracted driving, creates new provisions for pedestrian safety, and takes a deeper dive into creating a future of preventing speed-related crashes.
The legislation also invests in expanding and enhancing public transportation and increases connectivity by providing discounted bus fare to veterans, seniors and students, while funding urban transit districts and further supporting programs like Complete Streets.
“This comprehensive bill tackles many of the issues that I know are important to my constituents and to me, both as a legislator and as a commuter and mom to young drivers,” said Sen. Cohen. “We are looking at cracking down on reckless driving, protecting roadside workers, increasing penalties for failure to yield to pedestrians – these are issues that we all face everyday on our roads. We are taking a multifaceted approach to transportation infrastructure by working to make our roads safer, while increasing connectivity in our communities by investing in public transportation. I am grateful for the vision and leadership of Commissioner Eucalitto and his team at DOT and look forward to continuing our good work together.”
Among other provisions, the bill addresses the following issues:
Reduced Bus Fair for Students, Veterans and Seniors
-Requires DOT to provide a 50% public bus fare discount to veterans, seniors age 65 or older, those aged 18 or younger and the disability community. Eligible individuals can get a reduced fare card from DOT and present it to receive the discount. It also allows school boards to purchase passes at the discounted rate and either distribute them at no cost to public school students grades 9 to 12 or sell the passes to students at cost or below.
Increasing Safety on our Roads
-Increases parking distance from crosswalks and stop signs from 25 to 30 feet
-Increases penalty for parking within 10 feet of a fire hydrant to $200
-Increases the penalty for failure to yield to pedestrians from $500 to $750
-Addresses dangerous left lane driving by extending the existing prohibition, creates a public awareness campaign to ensure drivers are aware of the law and fines associated with noncompliance
-Increases the age from 18 to 21 under which all motorcycle drivers must wear a helmet
-Increases the helmet requirement for children using a bicycle, e-bike, motorized or non-motorized scooter, skateboard or using roller blades or skates, from age 16 to age 18
-Requires drivers who receive a reckless driving violation to attend an operator’s retraining program
-Generally prohibits anyone from intentionally projecting a laser on or at an aircraft, violations are a class A misdemeanor
-Requires the DOT commissioner to develop a plan to expand speed camera use on state roads
-Removes cap on the number of highway work zones where DOT may simultaneously operate speed cameras, currently the program is capped at 15 work zones.
Investing in Transportation Infrastructure
-Allows “EV Charging” to be included on highway specific service signs
-Expands a law that expired in 2024 that requires DOT to fund urban transit districts based on a formula set in federal law
-Allows DOT Commissioner implement grants to support Complete Streets projects, and requires the Commissioner to offer advice and assistance when implementing said projects. Complete Streets is an existing initiative that requires the State and municipalities to consider all modes of transportation when planning and designing transportation networks.
-Requires Vision Zero Council and the chief state’s attorney to study and make recommendations on using intelligent speed assistance devices to address speeding and reckless driving
-Exempts adaptive e-bikes from the $3,000 MSRP cap on CHEAPR rebates and adds residents with disabilities to the list of residents who have priority for vouchers
-Codifies the Small Harbor Improvement Projects Program (SHIPP) and recapitalizes it with an existing $20 million general obligation bond authorization
Uber/Lyft Driver Protections
-Requires Transportation Network Companies (TNC’s) like Uber or Lyft to 1) provide real-time messaging between the company and its drivers, 2) give a weekly summary to each of their drivers about rides they completed the previous week and 3) provide the driver with information on certain programs like Paid Family Medical Leave. It also prohibits a TNC from taking or threatening retaliatory action against a driver because the driver filed a complaint.
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