Dangerous Roads newsletter: Driving fast is ingrained on Long Island. Can technology stop chronic offenders?

The last time I got a speeding ticket was my 30th birthday, and I totally deserved it.

I was heading to my brother in Utica with my wife and some friends back in January 2008 — before I had GPS navigation. When I realized I had been driving more than an hour in the wrong direction, I stupidly attempted to make up for lost time by driving dangerously fast on icy roads, until I got pulled over.

At the time, I resented the state trooper for writing me a speeding ticket on my birthday. But, in retrospect, I’m glad he did, as it helped ensure that I lived to see many more birthdays, as did all of my passengers. The points on my license, and the fact that I had gotten another speeding ticket within the previous year or so, also helped scare me straight. My foot has been a lot lighter on the gas ever since.

But what of the speedsters who don't learn their lesson, even after racking up multiple tickets in a short period? Some may not like to hear this, but the reality is that driving fast is as ingrained in some corners of Long Island culture as bagels and shopping malls. As my colleague Keshia Clukey recently reported, there were 56,723 speeding tickets issued on Long Island last year — more than 10% of the nearly 500,000 speeding tickets written statewide, according to the Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research.

Now state lawmakers are considering taking the decision to drive over the speed limit out of the hands of some motorists. As part of her State of the State address last week, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed installing "speed limiters" in the vehicles of New York City drivers with aggressive driving records. The pilot program — which could eventually be expanded across New York — would use "intelligent speed assistance" technology to prevent vehicles from moving more than a few miles per hour over the posted speed limit of any road.

The proposal has, not surprisingly, already received pushback, including from Jay Beeber, executive director of policy for the National Motorists Association. He said lawmakers will try to win support by claiming to target only "super speeders," but the real goal may be broader.

"This is government installing a speed limiter on your car. Don’t pretend that stops with violators — soon it will be mandated for all cars," Beeber wrote in an email. "The minute you say ‘it’s OK for the state to control your private vehicle,’ you’ve crossed a line that doesn’t uncross."

But Alexa Sledge, spokesperson for Transportation Alternatives, a nonprofit advocacy group, noted that for some persistent speeders, no amount of fines or any other penalty will deter them from their dangerous driving habits. The top 10 "super speeders" in New York City in 2024 received an average of 271 school-zone speeding tickets, according to a study conducted by her group. The top offender received more than 560 school-zone speed camera tickets that year, or about one every 16 hours.

"Those people are obviously not being slowed down by speeding tickets," said Sledge, adding that "in an ideal world," the legislation would be enacted beyond New York City. "Everywhere that we can have this program and this policy, it's going to save lives."

The "slippery slope" argument should be kept in mind. But there’s nothing new about the notion of government imposing restrictions on drivers who have proved they can’t be trusted to follow the rules. New York already mandates ignition interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers, and can suspend or revoke the licenses of drivers with several offenses. Speed limiters could, arguably, be more effective than any of those measures at curbing dangerous driving.

Of course, there’s a tool more effective than any of those at slowing down drivers: good sense. A little more of that would have made my 30th birthday a lot happier.

Readers sound off

This week’s email comes from a retired professional driver who believes Long Island’s roads would be safer if right turns at red lights were no longer legal.

A lot of people don't stop at all — even with pedestrians in the crosswalk. They may do a "rolling stop" at best. I can see in rural areas and certain sections of L.I. where that may make sense but not on all of Long Island, and Nassau County in particular. I can only imagine an impatient lawmaker late for a meeting or event came up with that one in the '70s, Otherwise, it doesn't make sense to me.

Andre Davis, Elmont

Do you think rights on red should remain legal on Long Island? Why or why not? Let us know at roads@newsday.com.

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.