City Council Survey (District 5): Jessica S. Lappin

Political Party:
Democratic Party

http://www.jessicalappin.com

Candidate Submitted Biography:

Council Member Jessica Lappin, Chair of the Land Use Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses, was elected to the City Council in November 2005. She represents the 5th District of Manhattan, which includes the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island. Praised by the New York Times for her "steely resolve, dedication and energy," Lappin is recognized as a strong advocate for reducing class size, creating new parks, and making construction safer in New York City.

In January 2006, Council Member Lappin was elected by her colleagues to Chair the Land Use Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting, and Maritime Uses, where she leads the Council's efforts to protect the historic fabric of our city, approve new schools, and promote safe and sensible development.

In addition to serving on the Land Use Committee, Council Member Lappin is a member of the following Council Committees: Education, Sanitation, Transportation, General Welfare, Standards & Ethics, and Oversight and Investigations.

Jessica Lappin is a lifelong New Yorker who received a Regents Diploma from Stuyvesant High School. She earned her B.A. in Government from Georgetown University, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude.

Jessica Lappin is married and lives with her husband and son in East Midtown.

City Council Survey (District 5): Jessica S. Lappin

Question 1:
What is the most important transportation need in your district? As a Council Member, how would you work to address this need?

The East Side is in desperate need of greater transportation options. The 2nd Avenue subway, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), and ferry service would all help address that need, and I have advocated for the swift construction and implementation of all three. In particular, I worked hard to convince the Department of Transportation (DOT) to bring BRT to our neighborhood and am pleased that it will be coming to First and Second Avenues soon. I have also secured capital funding for a ferry dock in my district and am working with the Economic Development Corporation and DOT to implement service. It's also critical for us to improve bike and pedestrian safety at dangerous intersections as I have done successfully at places like 57th Street and First Avenue.


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Question 2:
The intersection of E 79 Street and 3rd Ave is one of the most dangerous in your district, where 1 people died and 34 people were injured between 1995-2005 (NYS DOT). As a City Council member, what traffic enforcement policies or physical changes to the intersection infrastructure would you support to make this intersection safer for everyone who uses it (pedestrians, cyclists and drivers)?

I am very concerned about pedestrian and bike safety and have been working with DOT to reconfigure a number of intersections, including 57th Street and First Avenue (where 2 pedestrians have died), 79th Street and York Avenue and 79th Street and Third Avenue. After years of advocacy, I recently had a big victory at 57th Street and First Avenue. DOT has agreed to install two left turn lanes on First Avenue, a left turn signal, and will prohibit cars from turning while pedestrians cross. This should make that dangerous corner significantly safer. While each corner is different, I am using the same collaborative approach at other intersections and hope to have similar victories in the near future.


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Question 3:
According to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles' most currently available data, in 2007 speeding was a contributing factor in over 3,000 motor vehicle crashes in New York City. Furthermore, the same data showed that the top human contributing factor to the 264 fatal crashes in New York City during 2007 was also speeding. Given these figures, what measures, if any, do you support to redress this problem? Finally, do you believe that New York City’s current speed limits are safe?

Speed limits don't matter if there isn't any enforcement of them. Unfortunately, the NYPD does not do a very good job at keeping drivers within the existing limits. In fact, the overall approach of the NYPD seems to prioritize the movement of traffic over the safety of bikers and pedestrians, which is not safe or sustainable.

I support the measures outlined in your organization’s report Executive Order: A Mayoral Strategy for Traffic Safety. I hope to move some of the recommendations outlined in that report forward. In particular, I agree that an office that focuses solely on road safety is a great way to start making serious reductions in traffic fatalities.

Along with a coordinated effort to reduce traffic fatalities, all information and data related to road safety should be made available to the public. Good governance is directly correlated with transparency.


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Question 4:
The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's website reports: "In New York City, obesity is epidemic: more than half of adult New Yorkers are overweight (34%) or obese (22%). Data show that obesity begins early in life: nearly half of all elementary school children and Head Start children are not a healthy weight. In New York City, 1 in 5 kindergarten students, and 1 in 4 Head Start children, is obese." Do you believe that increasing walking and biking in New York City would improve public health? If yes, how would you work to increase walking and biking in your district?

Childhood obesity is a serious public health issue for our city. Obviously, walking and biking are just two ways that city kids can become healthier. And I support measures to encourage that. For example, I have worked with individuals to install bike racks near their homes or offices and sponsored a free bike helmet giveaway for children and adults. Increasing safe bike lanes and pedestrian walkways would also make it easier for New Yorkers to get exercise.

But there are other ways for children to get exercise too. That’s why I have secured city funds for summer Parks Associates in city parks and for Asphalt Green, a facility that has taught 20,000 public school children how to swim for free.

And exercise is only half of the equation. Families have to eat right too. One of the first things I did in office was to bring greenmarkets to the East Side. I have also funded educational programs on healthy eating and voted in favor of adding fresh fruit and vegetable vendors to underserved neighborhoods.


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Question 5:
Road pricing, including such measures as non-stop tolling, fees based on vehicle miles travelled or entry into a highly congested zone, has been the source of much discussion in New York City and other major metropolitan areas. London famously uses a congestion charge to fund its transit system, Oregon recently piloted a program to replace the gas tax with a fee for miles driven and Seattle recently studied how road pricing could be introduced on a regional basis. Seattle's study, “Traffic Choices Study" (http://psrc.org/projects/trafficchoices/index.htm), found that introducing new tolls on major corridors during peak traffic hours influenced drivers’ behavior and projected that a region-wide road pricing scheme could significantly reduce vehicular traffic congestion. Do you think that introducing a road pricing strategy would change New Yorkers’ travel choices? Do you think that this would be an effective way for the City to reduce backups on high-traffic roadways like the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, the Gowanus Expressway or the Long Island Expressway? Finally, do you believe there are additional benefits in the surrounding neighborhoods which could be realized from the reduction of vehicular congestion on these routes?

I voted in favor of congestion pricing and am disappointed that it didn’t come up for a vote in Albany. Not only would congestion pricing have reduced traffic and improved our air quality, it would have raised much needed funds for mass transit too.

The data out there has shown that road pricing strategies do change travel choices and I assume that would hold true for New York City too.

Undoubtedly, a reduction in traffic on our city’s major entry-points would help our local economy and have the positive effect of making our city safer, cleaner, and more vibrant.


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Question 6:
Do you believe that reducing residential parking requirements as set forth within NYC zoning regulations would affect neighborhood traffic congestion, and if so, in what way?

Regulations that encourage smarter residential development and better site design are beneficial in a number of ways, including lowering neighborhood traffic congestion through discouraging automobile ownership.

Residential parking permits, a component of the defeated congestion pricing plan, would also have probably reduced congestion and cruising for spots.


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Question 7:
The NYC Department of Transportation's Public Plaza Program, Pedestrian Street Program and Summer Streets events are intended to diversify the use of public space and provide more places for New Yorkers to recreate and socialize. Do you support the temporary or permanent repurposing of street space for pedestrians and cyclists?

DOT’s Public Plaza Initiative and Pedestrian Street Program take underused public space and turn it into something more accessible and positive for the community. I support these and other creative initiatives to reclaim underutilized public space.


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Question 8:
The City recently released plans for Bus Rapid Transit and expressed interest in bringing a bike share program to New York City. Do you think these new projects would enhance the city's transportation network? Please explain.

As I explain above, I am a big supporter of Bus Rapid Transit and have worked hard to bring BRT to the East Side of Manhattan. BRT is a relatively inexpensive way to expand our transportation infrastructure, encourage commuters to get out of their cars, and make our transportation network more predictable and reliable.

I also support the idea of a bike share program in New York City. This is an ideal place for bike sharing because of our high population density. And, most of our workforce lives within 5 miles of their place of work.

The city’s recent feasibility study pointed out how such a program could be implemented. And at least three bike-share rental programs that were tested last summer proved successful, indicating that New Yorkers have a strong interest in such a program. That would enable the city to fully recover the costs of implementing it.


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Submitted by Jessicalappin on Sat, 08/08/2009 - 09:09.
Submitted by Jessicalappin on Wed, 07/15/2009 - 14:21.
Submitted by Jessicalappin on Sat, 08/08/2009 - 09:09.