Troy police get $6k for bike safety

TROY, N.Y. >> The Troy Police Department recently found out it was awarded $6,000 in state grants for bicycle and pedestrian safety projects.

As Bicycle Safety Month continues, the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC) recently announced it has distributed more than $468,000 in federal grant funds for 20 bike and pedestrian projects across the state.

State officials said this year’s investment is a more than 22 percent increase from the funding awarded in 2017 and emphasizes the importance of these enforcement, educational and outreach programs.

“We are committed to making New York’s roadways as safe as possible for all who use them, including bicyclists, pedestrians, motorcycle riders and motorists,” said Terri Egan, acting GTSC chair and executive deputy commissioner of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. “We are pleased to be able to dedicate these funds to help community groups educate our residents and vis- itors on how to safely share the road. Now that the weather is getting warmer, drivers should expect to see more bicyclists and pedestrians on the road and be prepared to use caution.”

Programs funded cover an array of activities including bicycle safety education and helmet distribution, pedestrian safety outreach and law-based education. In addition, grants support enforcement of the New York State vehicle and traffic laws pertaining to pedestrian and bicycle safety, and education for law enforcement on the pedestrian and bicycle laws.

Sgt. Sam Carello, the Traffic Safety Supervisor with the Troy Police Department noted that the department has received this grant funding for the past few years now, with past projects involving bicycle and pedestrian safety on a dangerous and busy Hoosick Street and he said the department is looking to use the grant money this year for the downtown area.

Carello said the funds help the department to be able to send officers out to different places to educate and warn people of some of the changes to the roadway related to bicycle and pedestrian safety and that it helps them be able to enforce the laws better.

Grants are available annually to individual agencies and not- for- profits. The proposals are evaluated based on the needs of the community and an analysis of crash data, along with the overall quality of the work plan.

“The goal [of these projects] is to try to reduce the fatalities and I think we have recently been able to cut that down and that’s our main goal,” said Carello. “We really concentrate on getting compliance through education.”