MIDDLETOWN, N.Y.—State Sen. James Skoufis is aiming to fix up Orange County’s roads with two pieces of legislation and continue his online pothole report form so people can help the Department of Transit identify areas needing work.
Skoufis is sponsoring the Safe Roads Act to change the fact that New York is not liable for damages suffered from road conditions on state roads between Nov. 16 and April 30. New York is the only state with a specific liability-free window, while some harsh-winter states, such as Maine and Michigan, have “notice and negligence” standards that hold the state responsible if there was clear negligence with knowledge of road conditions….