Hacks, fares must buckle up

ALBANY — Taxi and livery drivers — and their front-seat passengers — will soon be required to wear seat belts.

Gov. Cuomo overnight Tuesday announced that he signed a bill into law requiring the use of front-seat safety belts beginning in November.

“It’s a safety issue and it’s long overdue,” bill sponsor and state Sen. Martin Golden (R-Brooklyn) told the Daily News. “It’s a definite lifesaver.”

Under existing law, taxis, liveries and buses are excluded from the seat-belt law.

But that will change in November under the new law sponsored by Golden and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow (D-WestchesterCounty). Violators can be fined up to $100 per incident.