At Thursday’s meeting, State Sen. Patty Ritchie stands alongside one of the warning signs obtained through a state grant.

HEUVELTON -- St. Lawrence County legislators, law enforcement and Amish leaders met at the Heuvelton fire house Thursday to explore how to improve visibility markings on buggies.

State Sen. Patty Ritchie (R-Heuvelton), sponsor of the meeting, announced that by using a state grant she had secured, St. Lawrence County recently finished installing more than 100 new warning signs to alert motorists to buggies traveling on roadways. Ritchie represents the 48th Senate District. It includes all of the northern edge of St. Lawrence County from Massena to Hammond, including Ogdensburg, Canton and Gouverneur, and extends into Jefferson and Oswego counties.

The meeting -- which included representatives of the 12 Amish church districts in St. Lawrence County led by Mose Miller, St. Lawrence County Sheriff Kevin Wells, St. Lawrence County Board of Legislators Chair Joseph Lightfoot, County Legislators Travis Dann and Larry Denesha, and Lt. Kevin Bouyea representing the New York State Police—was prompted by recent concerns raised about the safety of buggies traveling on local highways and challenges posed by some in the Amish population’s desire not to use bright orange safety triangles due to their beliefs.

Amish use reflective tape or lanterns on their buggies to make them more visible.

Ritchie pointed out that newer tapes have the ability to increase visibility to 1,000 feet or more and have helped reduce nighttime crashes by more than 40 percent.

according to a press release from her office, all participants agreed to explore options for making buggies more visible.

“St. Lawrence County is home to the fastest growing Amish population in our state, and while they have different beliefs and customs, members of the Amish community have become a significant part of our community – living, working and investing in our region,” Ritchie said.

“This isn’t a case of Amish versus English. It’s about our shared responsibility to keep our community safe, and that’s what we achieved today: an agreement to work together to make our region -- specifically, our highways -- safer.”

In addition to her signage initiative, Ritchie said she has also partnered with St. Lawrence County Clerk Mary Lou Rupp, Sheriff Wells, the St. Lawrence County Traffic Safety Committee and St. Lawrence County’s four local colleges in recent years on a program to raise awareness of horse-drawn vehicles on local roads. Over the last two years, the press release said, 5,000 people have received brochures with facts and tips for safely sharing the road with horse-drawn vehicles and Amish people walking local highways, especially Amish schoolchildren.