New York City Considers Mandatory ‘Accelerator Restrictors’ for Habitual Speeders

For those of you who’ve had your share of speeding tickets, just imagine putting your pedal to the metal, only to have your car’s accelerator top out at — or below! — the speed limit.

A new measure under consideration in New York City could really clamp down on repeat speeders with accelerator-restrictor technology … particularly focusing on speeders cited on surface streets and in school zones. The city could end up mandating the accelerator restrictors to force chronic speeders to involuntarily slow down.

The devices are part of a pilot program known as Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA). Some use GPS data and maps to determine the correct speed depending on your car’s location. Some makes and models already have this technology installed as of a year ago. Vehicles that do not currently have ISA would have to be modified to add the technology.

It’s a controversial issue in New York … and Monday, TMZ was inside chambers as the New York City Council had a spirited discussion about whether the Big Apple will support these efforts, and tell state lawmakers in Albany they want the entire Empire State to enact this type of restriction to help save lives.

Leading the charge for accelerator restrictors in NYC is a group called Transportation Alternatives. TA’s Alexa Sledge tells TMZ their group has identified 10 Big Apple drivers they call “super speeders.” These are drivers with the most school-zone speed-camera violations.

Topping the list is the owner of an Audi A6, who had 563 speeding tickets last year. The group also released a map showing the most speeding tickets are written in a Brooklyn neighborhood. In Manhattan, another driver racked up 177 tickets — with nearly $60,000 in fines.

Sledge says suspending people’s licenses to drive just doesn’t work, citing research that shows 75% of people with suspended licenses still drive, creating a situation where carelessness behind the wheel could kill someone.