ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed the Alexander John Smullen Traffic Safety Memorial Law.
“We lost our son last year. He was hit in February 2024 and he passed away the beginning of March. It was a very tragic accident. He was 14-years-old. He was a great kid,” said New York State Assemblyman Robert Smullen.
To honor his son, Alexander John, Assemblyman Smullen sponsored legislation creating memorial road signs along state highways for people who died in traffic accidents.
“People can know this is where a traffic fatality has happened,” Smullen explained. “We see them all the time already. People put up little shrines to their loved ones that are lost. You see pictures and you see crosses, and you see ghost bicycles. This will just make it more official, if you will.”
The state legislature passed the bill unanimously, and the governor recently signed it into law. The memorial signs will include a person’s name along with safety messages reminding drivers to slow down, avoid texting while driving, and watch for motorcyclists.
“We want people to know that these tragedies can happen, but we wanna make them as few as possible and this is one of the ways that we’re trying to do that. This is our family contribution to help traffic safety.”
Assemblyman Smullen said the Department of Transportation will create an application process and fee for those seeking a memorial sign for a loved one.
“Anyone having trouble having to pay for a sign, they can get in contact with me,” Smullen said. “And we will make sure that the sign gets put up.”
The new law will take effect in 2026.
Leave a Reply