Drivers Beware: NYC Cracks Down on Idling Cars

NEW YORK, NY [AP] — An idling taxi, truck, or car sitting stagnant in the street is not an uncommon sight in NYC, however a new city-wide green initiative is aiming to change that.

The city has vowed to crackdown on idlers in an effort to reduce pollution and make the air cleaner for all New Yorkers.

NYC’s three-minute law — drivers have three minutes of idling before they are subject to a fine — has been in place citywide since 1971, but advocates say it is rarely enforced or advertised. Idling fines range from $220 to $2,000 for repeat offenders.

In February, Mayor Bloomberg signed a law limiting the time drivers can idle their engines while standing in school zones from three minutes to one minute.

The city says it will start to crackdown down on idlers; as well as attempt to raise public awareness about the dangers it causes.

The anti-idling campaign began this week with radio advertisements, message boards, billboards on highly trafficked locations across the city, and MTA bus ads that all have one common theme — turn it off — the campaign also reinforces that idling is against the law.

Reducing idling is a simple way for drivers to do their part to help New York achieve the cleanest air of any big city in America, city officials said.

The GreeNYC website, www.nyc.gov/greenyc, provides tips for the public to reduce idling.

A new report by the Environmental Defense Fund estimates that idling cars and trucks produce 130,000 tons of heat-trapping carbon dioxide each year in New York City. The group believes the one-minute idling limit next to schools is the toughest such law in the United States.