76-a. Motor cars and equipment. 1. It shall be unlawful for any owner or operator of railroad running through or within the boundaries of the state of New York, and engaged in the business of common carrier to operate for or transport its employees in a motor car which is not equipped with a reasonably substantial top for the protection of said employees from rain, snow, sleet, and hail and also equipped with a transparent windshield sufficient in width and height to reasonably protect said employees, and it shall be constructed of safety glass and such car shall also be equipped with an attached electric headlamp of sufficient candlepower as to render it visible at a distance of three hundred feet in advance of such car under ordinary atmospheric conditions, any obstruction, landmark, warning sign or grade crossing along such railroad right of way and said car shall also be equipped with two electric lights on the rear thereof of sufficient candlepower as to be visible at a distance of three hundred feet under ordinary atmospheric conditions, and the car shall also be equipped with an automatic operated windshield wiper so devised that the driver of said car can start or stop said windshield wiper while he is driving the car.
2. Any violation of the provisions of this act shall be punishable by a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars, nor more than one hundred dollars for each offense, and each day or part of a day a car is operated or furnished not so equipped as provided in subdivision one hereof, shall constitute a separate offense; provided, however, that any common carrier that has not been able to equip its rail track motor cars as required by the provisions of subdivision one, on or before the effective date of this act can, by applying to the commissioner of transportation which is hereby authorized to, and upon good cause shown, grant by order, additional time to any owner or operator of a common carrier by railroad, in which to equip such cars, not to exceed one year from the effective date of this section and, when such an order has been granted by said commissioner of transportation to such carrier, the provisions of this act penalizing rail carriers who do not so equip their cars shall not be applicable to those carriers securing such an order for such additional time in which to so equip their cars during the period granted to them only by order of the commissioner of transportation.
Last modified: February 3, 2019