A county sales tax is a common surcharge on retail sales that is collected from residents and non-residents who make purchases in Putnam County. Putnam County's is currently set at 8 3/8%, which includes the state share of the sales tax (4%), the current county share (4%), and an added MTA tax (3/8). Putnam County does not distribute its sales-tax revenue directly to its towns and villages, and instead has traditionally used this revenue to rely less on property taxes.
Putnam County’s sales-tax rate is the exact same sales tax paid by Westchester and Rockland county residents and just slightly higher (8 1/8%) than Dutchess and Orange county consumers. Westchester, Dutchess, and Orange directly distribute a portion of their sales tax to local governments while Rockland County does not.
Putnam County also does not charge sales taxes on clothing and footwear purchases under $110. This year-round exemption also applies to purchases made online. Likewise, clothing and footwear purchases under $110 are exempt year-round from sales taxes in Dutchess County, but in Orange, Rockland, and Westchester counties, as well as Connecticut, they are not.
Putnam County property taxes are paid directly by Putnam County property owners who own property and renters who indirectly pay through rent. The current rate of $2.7/ $1,000 of assessed value is the lowest rate in 18 years but is still marginally higher than Orange and Dutchess counties.
For the next Putnam County Budget Proposal, County Executive Kevin Byrne is looking to once again make some historic tax cuts. The purpose of this survey is to gain input from the community as to what would be most advantageous for you, the taxpayer. Please answer the following short survey to give your direct input on this important matter.
Beginning this week, NYSDOT will be starting a project which includes pavement resurfacing of State Route 52 from Fowler Ave in the Town of Carmel to just after the State Route 311 intersection in the Town of Kent. Resurfacing will include roadway milling, paving and new pavement striping.
Carmel, NY – Earlier today, County Executive Kevin Byrne announced that a new contractor has been selected to resume major construction required for the completion of the Peekskill Hollow Road bridges project. County Executive Byrne, alongside Putnam Valley Town Supervisor Jackie Annabi and Legislator Bill Gouldman, celebrated the milestone and assured residents that progress is happening with the long-delayed construction.
May 31st was Demolition Day for the steel superstructure of the Drewville Road Bridge. The entirety of the outdated deck structure was successfully removed and hauled offsite. This location of Drewville Road has been closed to traffic since May 18, and both car and truck detours seem to be working well. The project is on schedule with Drewville Rd. anticipated to be reopened later this Fall.
Putnam County initiated this bridge replacement project because of the bridge's deteriorated condition and the existing inadequate hydraulic alignment. This stream crossing is necessary to maintain vehicular connectivity to the area residences. The project will replace the existing 27 ft. single span steel multi girder bridge with a new 28 ft. single span 3-sided pre-cast concrete rigid frame structure on the same roadway alignment. The new structure will consist of two 10 ft. wide travel lanes with two 5 ft. shoulders.
The Fair Street project is in the Hamlet of Carmel, located approximately 1.3 miles between NY Route 52 (Gleneida Avenue) and a point about 1300 feet east of the intersection of Fair Street and Hill and Dale Road. Proposed improvements include pavement rehabilitation and roadway widening, extension of the sidewalk from Vink Drive to Hill and Dale Road, intersection improvements at Rt. 52 and Fair Street and at Vink Drive and Fair Street, continuation of ornamental street lighting from Rt. 52 to Vink Drive, drainage improvements, and replacement of three culverts on Michaels Brook and its tributaries.
The Putnam County Department of Health is made of several divisions all working towards improving and protecting the health of the entire community, through the lens of equity. Click on one of the options below to learn more about that division.
Welcome Message
The mission of the Putnam County Department of Health is to improve and protect the health of our community.
We strive to prevent the spread of disease, protect against environmental hazards, promote healthy lifestyles, ensure access to quality health services, and respond to disasters.
We encourage you to explore our website and contact us if you have any questions.
In the event of an emergency, Health Department staff are available 24/7. Please call 845-808-1390 to report a public health emergency, rabies exposure, communicable disease, water outage or sewer overflow. If you are a member of the media and would like to contact the health department, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Putnam On-Demand Microtransit Service for PART Route 3 (originally scheduled to begin March 4, 2025) is now DELAYED. Regular PART 3 transit and paratransit services will continue until Friday, March 7th. Please continue to check this page for updates. We appreciate your patience through this transition, thank you.
Hours: Monday – Friday: 4:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Saturday: 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. We are closed New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
The Department of Planning, Development, and Public Transportation has office hours from 9am to 5pm Monday through Friday with the exception of Summer Hours (8am - 4pm) from mid-June through mid-September. Bus tickets, monthly passes, and Microtransit cash vouchers are for available for sale at our office located at 841 Fair Street, Carmel, NY 10512.
The County's public transit system, Putnam Area Rapid Transit (PART), operates four fixed routes year round in addition to a seasonal trolley in Cold Spring and a commuter shuttle to the Metro North Station at Croton Falls. Half-Fare is available to those who apply and meet necessary requirements. PART Paratransit is an origin-to-destination transportation system for those Putnam residents who are unable to use the PART public transportation due to a physical or mental disability. PART Paratransit operates specially modified vans to transport riders with a range of disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs.
Contact Planning, Development & Public Transportation
The Cold Spring Trolley will resume Memorial Day Weekend 2025
FARES
Adults - $2
$1 Seniors / Students / ADA / Veterans
Exact change is required.
Questions? Call 845-878-RIDE (7433)
WHEN & WHERE?
The Cold Spring Trolley operates Saturdays and Sundays (Memorial Day to Veterans Day Weekend).
Hikers Drop Off - 9:00, 10:00 & 11:00 am - Routes feature a hikers’ drop off on Route 9D, Boscobel & Garrison.
Want to visit Manitoga, Constitution Marsh or the Butterfield Library? Just alert the driver. (Driver returns to Cold Spring if no stops are requested.)
Little Stony Point, Breakneck Ridge, Mt. Beacon & City of Beacon 12:00, 2:00 & 4:00 pm
Hikers’ Drop Off on 9D - 1:00 & 3:00 pm - Boscobel & Garrison stops by request (Manitoga, Contitution Marsh, Butterfield Library)
Paratransit
What is Paratransit?
PART Paratransit is an origin-to-destination transportation system for those Putnam residents who are unable to use the PART public transportation due to a physical or mental disability. PART Paratransit operates specially modified vans to transport riders with a range of disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs.
Who is eligible to use Paratransit?
A person may be eligible to use PART Paratransit under the following guidelines:
Service shall be provided to those persons within 3/4-mile of a PART fixed-route and have a destination that is within 3/4-mile of a PART fixed-route. THIS IS NOT A COUNTYWIDE SERVICE.
Service is complementary to the PART fixed-route. It is for persons with physical or mental disabilities who are unable to use accessible fixed-route transit service or for wheelchair persons on days when only a non-accessible bus is operating on the fixed-route.
Service is provided only after a certification process, which includes certification by a medical doctor, psychiatrist, ophthalmologist or optometrist affirming that an individual is unable to ride on public transportation due to a disability.
Age by itself does not entitle a person to use Paratransit.
Disabled visitors who reside in a location outside of Putnam County and have been ADA Certified by the jurisdiction in which they reside are eligible for 21 days of service over a one-year period beginning on the day service was first rendered. After this time, they must be certified by Putnam County.
Disabled visitors who have no documentation and reside in a location outside of Putnam County are presumed eligible for paratransit service for 21 days over a one-year period beginning on the day service was first rendered. After this time, they must be certified by Putnam County.
When does Paratransit operate?
Paratransit operates at the same time and the same days as the PART fixed-route transit service. If the PART fixed-route service is operating on snow routes, then Paratransit service will be comparable to the snow route.
How Much does it cost to be on Paratransit?
A Paratransit one-way trip currently costs $3.25. A trip begins when a person gets on the bus and ends when a person gets off the bus.
May a rider take a companion on Paratransit?
A Paratransit rider may be accompanied by one personal care attendant and/or one personal companion. A personal care attendant is considered a person traveling as an aide to facilitate the travel of a person with a disability. A personal care attendant will not be charged a fare. A companion means a person other than an attendant who may be traveling with a disabled person. A companion will pay the same fare as the person with the disability. Additional companions may be allowed if space is available. All personal companions and attendants must have the same origin and destination points. Service animals are also allowed at no charge.
How much assistance can the drivers offer riders?
Because Paratransit is an origin-to-destination service, riders must be able to meet the van outside their homes. Drivers cannot go into riders’ homes or carry riders or wheelchairs up or down stairs. Paratransit drivers do help riders board the van; they lock down wheelchairs and secure all seat belts. At the riders’ destination, the driver will help the rider off the van.
Are there any other restrictions?
All passengers in wheelchairs that are transported on a Paratransit vehicle must have the wheelchair secured in the provided securement devices in the designated locations on the vehicle. In no case will a wheelchair passenger be allowed to ride in the aisle.
The operator reserves the right to negotiate trip scheduling within one hour of the requested time. Paratransit is not a taxi or limousine service, your trip may be combined with one or more other trip requests.
A maximum of 50% of the system capacity can be dedicated any time of the day to subscription service. Paratransit may be used as a feeder bus to the regular fixed-route bus.
If a rider has three or more missed trips (no-shows and/or late cancellations) within a 30-day period, this will enact a review of their trips to determine the existence of a pattern or practice of missed trips. The rider’s frequency of use and proportion of trips missed will be analyzed in this review. If it is determined that the rider has established a pattern or practice of missed trips, the rider will be in violation of the County’s No Show/Late Cancellation Policy and will be sent a letter indicating the dates of the violations
A person, whose behavior threatens or has threatened the safety of Paratransit personnel or other passengers, may be denied service or have service suspended.
How does one apply to Paratransit?
Call any one of the following numbers and ask for an application: (845) 878-3480; (845) 878-7433 Or, Write to: Putnam County Department of Planning, Development & Public Transportation 841 Fair Street Carmel, NY 10512
A completed application will take no longer than 21 days to process from the date it is received by the Putnam County Planning Department.
How do you arrange a Paratransit trip?
Once you are certified and receive your ID card, you simply call (845) 878-7433 during the hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the day preceding desired service.
When you make the call, simply say you are calling to schedule a Paratransit trip. You will be asked your name; address; card ID number; when you want to leave and return; your destination; if you have special needs; and a phone number where you can be reached. If you find it necessary to cancel your trip, please call with the cancellation.
In 2019, the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) released data from their annual national survey indicating that more than 17 million stop-arm violations occur in the United States each year. Putnam Countyhas launched a School Bus Safety Program to reduce the illegal passing of school buses and improve student safety
On August 6, 2019, New York State passed legislation (S.4524B/A.4950B) authorizing school districts to install safety cameras on school buses to catch drivers who unlawfully pass a stopped school bus and ensure student safety.
To speak to a representative about a safety violation, contact the AlertBus Customer Contact Center at 1-877-504-7080.
NYS Stopping Laws
Yellow flashing lights mean the bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children. Slow down and prepare to stop your vehicle.
Red flashing lights mean the bus has stopped for the purpose of loading or unloading children. Stop your vehicle and wait until the school bus resumes motion or until signaled by the driver or police officer to proceed.
Which school districts in Putnam County will deploy the technology across bus fleets?
Mahopac, Carmel, & Brewster school districts will be participating.
Is School Bus Safety an Issue in New York State and Putnam County?
Every day 2.3 million children are transported by school buses throughout New York State. Data has shown that an estimated 50,000 drivers throughout the State illegally pass stopped school buses on a single school day*.
In New York State, a one-month study of 10 buses in East Meadow was conducted in 2019. Cameras recorded 615 illegal passes or roughly 2.3 per bus per day. This represents three times more than the number of tickets given out by Nassau and Suffolk counties during the 2018-2019 school year.
Reducing school bus stop-arm violations will significantly contribute to student and school bus safety in and around Putnam County. The automated camera system serves as a deterrent and education tool for motorists considering breaking the law and passing a stopped school bus.
While enforcement and education are critical in helping to change behavior, current models and legal frameworks in most states require that police officers catch motorists passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing to issue a citation. But with roughly 560,000 school buses traveling across more than 4 million miles of road and highway in the United States, conventional methods are not enough to effectively enforce the law to control these violations across the country. In addition, it permits local law enforcement officers to focus their energies on other high-priority tasks.
The School Bus Safety Program will provide data to partner school officials and municipalities to make informed decisions on school bus safety. The stop-arm violation data can also be leveraged by local law enforcement to add a physical presence to school bus stops with higher rates of infractions.
How Does the Safety Program Reduce Illegal Passings?
Entire school bus fleets will be outfitted with the latest safety technology, including safety cameras, DVR and storage devices, GPS, telemetry, LTE connectivity, [and internal cameras.]
In addition to this cutting-edge technology, the enforcement program is powered by software and processes and overseen by experienced safety professionals who coordinate with police, local officials, and school districts.
When a school bus is stopped with its lights and stop-arm activated, cameras capture incidents involving vehicles illegally passing the bus. Through cloud computing, data is sent to trained safety experts, who then review the footage and prepare evidence packages for municipalities.
By coupling technology-based enforcement with education and public safety campaigns, motorists learn how to adjust their behavior around school buses and children.
How will Putnam County School Districts Benefit from the Safety Program?
All school districts can opt-in to the program and benefit from an advanced school bus safety suite deployed across their entire fleets at no cost to the schools, taxpayers, or Putnam County. The violator-funded safety program handles the procurement, installation, management, and maintenance of the safety technology. In addition to a targeted effort to reduce the illegal passing of school buses in the community, the school district will benefit from access to cloud-connected internal cameras and BusPatrol's AlertBus platform for live-stream video and emergency alerts.
In the run-up to the program launch, Putnam County will work with BusPatrol to execute a community education and awareness campaign, including road signage, community announcements, and warning letters. The program will be preceded by a 30-day warning period, during which warning letters will be issued to drivers who fail to stop for school buses with no monetary penalty.
Who Are Stop-Arm Violation Tickets Issued to, and How Much Will They Cost Violators?
Stop-arm cameras identify illegal passers by license plate number. Tickets are issued to a vehicle's registered owner unless the automobile is proven stolen during the time of the offense. If someone other than the vehicle's owner was driving at the time, the owner can request a transfer of liability.
In most states, a first-time stop-arm violation carries a fine of $250. In New York state, subsequent violations within an eighteen-month period are subject to a $25 increase in penalty, up to a maximum of $300.
Data from other safety programs demonstrates that 98% of first-time offenders do not receive a second ticket and that 95% of drivers do not contest their ticket after seeing video evidence of their violation.
How Does It Work?
The diagram above is a representation of the camera systems used in the County. BusPatrol's leading stop-arm enforcement program is built on a robust, guided, and secure process. When a vehicle illegally passes a school bus while the stop-arm is deployed, BusPatrol's multi-lens camera box captures the violation and the car's license plates from different depths and angles. The footage, GPS, and timecode data are stored locally on an onboard digital video recorder (DVR) unique to each bus.
The data relating to the incident and violation is sent via an encrypted LTE network to BusPatrol's secure cloud system. BusPatrol's artificial intelligence software filters all footage received from each bus before it goes to one of our safety specialists for review.
A BusPatrol safety specialist reviews the filtered footage. If they determine that the violation is indeed an offense, the specialist prepares an evidence package for use by law enforcement. The package is built in accordance with state law, complete with video footage, license plate number, make, model, driver information, GPS location, and a timestamp of the incident.
The evidence package is submitted to the enforcement entity via a secure cloud portal. The enforcement entity responsible for approving violations reviews the evidence package to determine if a violation has occurred. If approved, a ticket is mailed to the vehicle's owner, along with a link to the AlertBus Driver Education & Payment Portal, where they can view video evidence of their violation. The vehicle owner makes their payment online, through the mail, or in person in the municipal jurisdiction – tickets can also be contested through the relevant jurisdiction's civil court system.
When Should I Stop for a Stopped School Bus in New York State?
When a school bus stops and flashes its red lights, traffic approaching from either direction must stop before reaching the bus:
on a two-lane road
on multi-lane highways
on divided highways
Embed NYS Stopping Law Video / Video file also available in the Video folder in this pack:
Yellow flashing lights mean the bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children. Slow down and prepare to stop your vehicle.
Red flashing lights mean the bus has stopped for the purpose of loading or unloading children. Stop your vehicle and wait until the school bus resumes motion or until signaled by the driver or police officer to proceed.
Learn more at New York DMV.
How to Behave Around School Buses in New York State
Information from DMV New York
School Buses are Unlike Other Vehicles School buses have bigger blind spots, take longer to stop, and need more room to maneuver than a standard vehicle. Buses should be treated differently than you would treat an average-sized vehicle. Drivers need to know how to react to a school bus in operation.
When you encounter a school bus:
Slow down. School buses make frequent stops, so be patient and drive at a reasonable speed. Remember, school buses are required by law to stop at railroad crossings in addition to picking up and dropping off students.
Be alert. Always be aware of children and parents waiting at a school bus stop or perhaps running to catch the bus before it departs.
Come to a complete stop at least 20 feet away from the bus.
Be extra careful to look around before moving your vehicle, as children may be walking in front of, behind, or on the side of school buses. Check for pedestrians - especially near schools, bus stops, playgrounds, parks, and behind parked cars.
Safety Tips for Children, Student Riders, and Parents
Parents: You should discuss transportation conduct and safety rules with your children and share the safety tips below.
Get to the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus arrives.
When the bus approaches, stand at least three giant steps (six feet) away from the curb and wait away from the street.
Wait until the bus stops, the door opens, and the driver says it's okay before stepping onto the bus.
If you have to cross the street in front of the bus, walk on the sidewalk or along the side of the road to a point at least five giant steps (ten feet) ahead of the bus before you cross. Be sure that the driver can see you, and you can see the bus driver.
Use the handrails to avoid falling. Be careful that clothes with drawstrings and bags with straps are not caught in the handrails or doors.
Never walk behind the bus.
After you get off the bus, walk at least three giant steps away from the side of the bus.
If you drop something near the bus, tell the bus driver. Never try to pick it up because the driver may not be able to see you.
Students can only embark or disembark at their designated stop.
Important Safety Tips for Children to Learn and Remember
Check before you step.
I see the driver. The driver sees me.
Wait for the driver's signal to cross.
Look left, right, and left again.
Use a backpack or book bag to avoid dropping things.
Horn means danger.
Learn More About School Bus Safety
The primary focus of the School Bus Stop-Arm Safety Program is public awareness and education. The success of the program is measured in the reduction of stop-arm violations over time and not by the number of vehicles caught violating the law. Please review the information regarding school bus safety and the "danger zone" below.
The following information is provided for assistance.
To speak to a representative about a stop-arm violation, contact the AlertBus Customer Contact Center at 1-877-504-7080.
The Contact Center is available Monday- Friday (8 AM – 5 PM). English, Spanish, and French-speaking, customer service agents are available to address your inquiries. Please have your Citation Number ready when you call to expedite our service.
To view the violation video evidence online or to pay a violation by credit card, visit www.alertbus.com and enter the following information: Your citation number (example: NY-777777) and vehicle license plate number (no dashes or spaces), as listed on your citation.
