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Take Action! Support Safe Streets Legislation
Written by Boston Biker on Jan 31From livable streets:
Next Wednesday, February 7th is the deadline for legislative committees to act on bills, and An Act to Reduce Traffic Fatalities remains in front of the Joint Committee on Transportation.
Will you help us make Massachusetts streets safer for all? The Committee needs to hear from you!
LivableStreets and the Massachusetts Vision Zero Coalition have been working closely with Senator Brownsberger and Representatives Hecht and Rogers to develop a comprehensive traffic safety bill that will prevent crashes and protect vulnerable road users. Act now and help us enact these street safety measures into law!
It’s easy, just follow these three simple steps:
1. Find out if your legislators are co-sponsors of the bill.
2. Send an email to the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Transportation and your state legislators (see template email provided below). Emails should be sent to the committee chairs, copying your Representative and Senator, by Thursday, February 1st.
3. Make sure to copy [email protected] on your email.
About the Bill
An Act to Reduce Traffic Fatalities (S1905/H2877) will ensure basic, but necessary traffic regulations to guarantee that everyone on our streets can expect to get from point A to point B safely. The bill’s provisions that the Vision Zero Coalition believes will make the biggest difference to the safety of people walking and biking are:
- Lowering default speed limit on state highways and parkways in thickly settled areas from 30 mph to 25 mph
- Allowing municipalities to install limited traffic safety cameras exclusively for speeding and red light & right turn violations
- Equipping state contracted trucks with safety side-guards to reduce pedestrian & bicyclist fatalities
- Prohibits usage of mobile devices, except those in hands-free mode, while operating a motor vehicle
- Vulnerable road user language
What’s Next?
If the bill is reported favorably by this committee, it will be sent on to the House or Senate Ways and Means Committee. If it is reported unfavorable or “studied,” it would essentially be dead for the remainder of this legislative session.
EMAIL INSTRUCTIONS AND SAMPLE TEXT
To: Joseph.Boncore@masenate.
CC: Your State Senator and Representative (if you don’t know who they are, click here); [email protected]
Recommended email subject: Support of An Act to reduce traffic fatalities S1905/H2877
Sample email text:
Dear Senator Boncore, Representative Straus, and members of the Joint Committee on Transportation,
I am writing to urge a favorable report for An Act to reduce traffic fatalities, (S1905 – Brownsberger, H2877 – Hecht and Rogers).
Serious injury and deaths from traffic crashes continue with troubling frequency on our streets. An Act to reduce traffic fatalities S1905/H2877 is a comprehensive piece of legislation which aims to create safer streets for all users, including bicyclists, pedestrians, and passengers of motor vehicles.
[Tell your own story here. Why is this bill important to you?]
Thanks again for your consideration, and I urge a favorable report for this bill.
[full name
street address
city/town, state, zip
phone:
email: ]
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