Don’t just sit there. In the Village of Mamaroneck, at least, it could be a crime.
Mamaroneck Village trustees on Monday unanimously agreed to outlaw cars from idling for more than three minutes within village borders, joining neighboring Larchmont and Harrison in attempting to curb harmful emissions. The local laws are all stricter than New York State law, which allows idling for up to five minutes.
Trustees approved the anti-idling law after a public hearing, during which speakers raised concerns that it could hurt local businesses that rely on vehicles, like refrigerated trucks, that must stay running when loading goods to function properly.
In turn, Mayor Norman Rosenblum put on the record the “legislative intent” of the law as being reducing pollution while not interfering with the “normal business process.” Police will have discretion in enforcing the new rule, trustees said.
Curbing harmful pollutants – studies show a car creates the same amount of toxic emissions idling for 20 minutes as driving 320 miles – comes first and foremost, Rosenblum said, but doing so doesn’t mean that business has to be harmed in the process.
“We have a business community that must be supported, but not at the expense of children,” he said.
