The leader of the state Senate, Republican lawmaker John Flanagan, said Friday he would back a plan to restore speed cameras in New York City school zones.
The surprise announcement came just hours after The Post’s front page exposed speed demons doing 40 mph or more in one Brooklyn school zone and demanded that state lawmakers take action.
New York City was forced to shut down the cameras Wednesday after legislation to renew them got tied up in Albany dysfunction, leading to loud protests from parents, city officials and many city lawmakers.
“Let me say publicly what I have been saying privately for weeks and what we said in Albany: The Senate Republican Majority is willing to approve an extender of the existing New York City speed camera program,” Flannigan (R-Long Island) said in a statement.
“During that time, we can work to enact a more comprehensive safety plan with all of the stakeholders involved.”
But Flanagan has maintained Assembly Democrats should return to Albany as well to consider measures that would extend local taxes in Warren, Essex, Cattaraugus and Greene counties.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie has insisted he won’t reconvene the Assembly in Albany this summer. At the same time, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has not exercised his authority to call a special session of the legislature, arguing that he cannot force the Senate to vote on a bill.
Flanagan said there should be deliberations among all involved — the governor, Heastie and Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“Now, our so-called partners in government refuse to engage to ensure the cameras stay on,” he said.
“While they are holding press conferences and assigning blame, nobody has picked up the phone to have discussions in any meaningful way. Where do the Governor, Speaker Heastie and Mayor de Blasio stand on passing an extender that will keep the cameras on? The public has a right to know.”
The Democrat-controlled state Assembly had passed a bill extending the cameras with no strings attached, but it was held up in the state Senate by two Brooklyn lawmakers, Sens. Marty Golden (R-Bay Ridge) and Simcha Felder (D-Midwood).
Neither was immediately available for comment.
Staten Island’s Sen. Andrew Lanza also opposed the cameras.
Golden and Lanza both attempted to mollify critics by supporting legislation that would add stop signs and warning lights around school zones.
But a study by data-crunchers at the startup Localize.city found that most of the dangerous intersections around schools already have a traffic light, meaning safety likely wouldn’t be improved.
The growing anger in New York City over Albany’s failure to keep the red lights on has shifted the politics in Golden’s Brooklyn district.
Golden has issued statements in recent weeks indicating support for the cameras, as his two Democratic opponents lambasted his previous opposition.
