Move Over Laws

mcpd2025

Member
May 20, 2010
1,557
Maryland, USA
We have the law in Maryland, but I live and work in the most liberal county in the state. There isn't a single sign announcing the move over law in the entire county. When you drive into the neighboring counties on highways, you immediately see the signs as you enter... but not a single sign where I work. I still enforce the law as best I can, but every single idiot driver I pull over tells me they had no idea the law existed.
 

Steve0625

Member
Jun 23, 2010
1,213
Northville NY
We've got it in New York, too. Didn't stop a stupid ass trucker from striking and killing a trooper who was well off on the shoulder with his (exceedingly obvious) emergency lights going. Trooper was in the car writing a ticket when he got hit.


It really pisses me off that half of the drivers around me don't move over or slow down if they can't move over.
 

Lightbarnut

New Member
Jun 9, 2010
720
Palatka, Florida.
Here you have to slow down to 20 MPH less than the posted limit if you're on a 2 lane road and can't move over one lane, such as if the road is a 4 lane highway. 55=35, 45=25, 35=15. Those are the main speed limits in my county.


I love the Move Over law myself. Going slower gives me more time to look at the blinkies. :D
 

JazzDad

Member
Aug 5, 2011
5,165
USA
I don't just move over, I pull off the road well into the grass. I stop and hand my keys over to the scene's IC.
 

Turd Ferguson

Member
Jul 3, 2011
2,250
Sumner, Wa
I remember driving up in British Columbia, they have signs up there advertising a max of 45 km/h near parked emergency vehicles.
 

Zapp Brannigan

Lifetime VIP Donor
May 23, 2010
3,580
.
Steve0625 said:
We've got it in New York, too. Didn't stop a stupid ass trucker from striking and killing a trooper who was well off on the shoulder with his (exceedingly obvious) emergency lights going. Trooper was in the car writing a ticket when he got hit.

It really pisses me off that half of the drivers around me don't move over or slow down if they can't move over.

And it also includes FD, EMS, PD, and recently expanded to include tow operators.
 

mm2k5

Member
Jan 7, 2012
170
Southern Missouri
Upon approaching a stationary emergency vehicle displaying lighted red or red and blue lights, or a stationary vehicle owned by the state highways and transportation commission and operated by an authorized employee of the department of transportation displaying lighted amber or amber and white lights, the driver of every motor vehicle shall:

(1) Proceed with caution and yield the right-of-way, if possible with due regard to safety and traffic conditions, by making a lane change into a lane not adjacent to that of the stationary vehicle, if on a roadway having at least four lanes with not less than two lanes proceeding in the same direction as the approaching vehicle; or


(2) Proceed with due caution and reduce the speed of the vehicle, maintaining a safe speed for road conditions, if changing lanes would be unsafe or impossible.

Section 304-022 Emergency vehicle defined--use of light


"Hit A Worker Law & Penalties"

Imposes a fine for killing or injuring a highway worker of up to $10,000 and loss of
their license for a year.
http://www.modot.org/workzones/documents/HitAWorkerLaw.pdf


Hit-A-Worker-.jpg
 

Phillyrube

Member
May 21, 2010
1,272
Flatistan
When I was out at Sturgis for Bike Week a few years ago, I noticed stopped police cars with just amber flashing to the rear. State laws says you cannot pass a stopped emergency vehicle with red or blue lights flashing. If amber, can pass with caution.


32-31-6.1. Stop required upon approaching stopped emergency vehicle using red signals--Requirements for approaching vehicles using amber or yellow signals--Violation as misdemeanor. Upon approaching from any direction any stopped authorized emergency vehicle making use of red visual signals meeting the requirements of this title, the driver of every other vehicle shall come to a complete stop before reaching the stopped emergency vehicle and may, unless otherwise directed, proceed with caution only after ascertaining that it is safe to do so, and upon approaching from any direction any stopped vehicle making use of amber or yellow warning lights, the driver of every other vehicle shall:


(1) If driving on an interstate highway or other highway with two or more lanes traveling in the same direction as the vehicle, merge into the lane farthest from the vehicle and proceed with caution, unless otherwise directed; or


(2) If driving on a two lane highway, slow to a speed that is at least twenty miles per hour less than the posted speed limit or five miles per hour when the speed limit is posted at twenty miles per hour or less and proceed with caution, unless otherwise directed.


A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.


Source: SL 1975, ch 210, § 2; SL 1989, ch 255, § 215; SL 2003, ch 173, § 1.
 

CrownVic97

Member
May 21, 2010
3,350
Hazen, ND
From time to time, I've seen NDHP cars parked on the side of the interstate all lit up and no car in front of them. They are making sure our move over laws are being followed.
 

timlinson

New Member
Apr 11, 2011
513
North Dakota
CrownVic97 said:
From time to time, I've seen NDHP cars parked on the side of the interstate all lit up and no car in front of them. They are making sure our move over laws are being followed.
Yep, or other HPs/ deputies will sit farther down and pull you over if you don't move over.
 

justavillain

Member
Mar 7, 2013
1,010
Grand Rapids
Michigan has them and due to the obnoxious amount of construction we have in this fine state it gets enforced a lot


For police, fire, EMS, and construction.


In both areas I work it seems to be the norm and works well until there is a large back up then the 2 lanes creep closer to the trucks
 

CrownVic97

Member
May 21, 2010
3,350
Hazen, ND
Here's a civilian synopsis on the NDHP webpage of what vehicles qualify under the ND law:


What is the move-over law? | North Dakota State Highway Patrol

If an authorized emergency vehicle is parked or stopped on the interstate system or on a multilane highway outside the limits of a city, and the authorized emergency vehicle is displaying a flashing, revolving, or rotating amber, blue, white, or red light, the driver of an approaching vehicle shall proceed with caution and yield the right of way by moving to a lane that is not adjacent to the authorized emergency vehicle if the move may be made with due regard to safety and traffic conditions or if not, the driver shall proceed with due caution, reduce the speed of the vehicle, and maintain a safe speed for the road conditions.This law also applies to DOT maintenance vehicles.




So, if
any vehicle has their warning/emergency lights on and is parked on the shoulder of the road, over to the left you go. Many people do follow it pretty well around here. Very seldom have a seen an idiot not move over and they slow down a little when they go by. It irritates me when I do see it. Granted this is hard to do with heavy traffic on an interstate passing lane or on two-lane highways, so then slowing down to a safe speed to pass is best in that situation. Otherwise, I will not hesitate to turn a driver in if they pass an emergency or utility vehicle lit up on the side of the road at highway speed without moving over. If it's clear to me they did not choose to tilt the wheel to the left, their butt is getting canned.
 

rwo978

Member
May 21, 2010
5,196
ND, USA
CrownVic97 said:
Here's a civilian synopsis on the NDHP webpage of what vehicles qualify under the ND law:

What is the move-over law? | North Dakota State Highway Patrol





So, if
any vehicle has their warning/emergency lights on and is parked on the shoulder of the road, over to the left you go. Many people do follow it pretty well around here. Very seldom have a seen an idiot not move over and they slow down a little when they go by. It irritates me when I do see it. Granted this is hard to do with heavy traffic on an interstate passing lane or on two-lane highways, so then slowing down to a safe speed to pass is best in that situation. Otherwise, I will not hesitate to turn a driver in if they pass an emergency or utility vehicle lit up on the side of the road at highway speed without moving over. If it's clear to me they did not choose to tilt the wheel to the left, their butt is getting canned.

Try doing this on the I with traffic in both lanes, no one slows down. I mainly run into it stopping EB 94 from Sheyenne St. I try to get them stopped on the ramp. But, as oblivious as the motoring public is, they end up halfway between there and Veterans Blvd. If I do end up making a stop on the I, I 95%+ of the time do a passenger side approach... it's easier to see inside the car, the driver is not normally expecting it/throws them off if they were planning on doing something, and I can see the traffic behind me better.


Move over laws are nice, but not a lot of people know of them or follow them, which isn't much different than other laws on the books outside of the common ones (speeding, red light, stop sign....)
 

emt322636

Member
May 22, 2010
505
Watertown, NY
I was very glad to see the move over laws actually enforced here in upstate NY yesterday. Was heading north, home from Syracuse with my wife on I-81. Saw a NYSP vehicle quite a ways ahead, lights flashing, pulled over. I, of course, changed to the passing lane when it was safe and slowed to around 60 mph. All the other traffic in the vicinity did the same, all except for a blue BMW SUV with Ontario (Canada) plates that was right in front of me, I had given him plenty of room to change lanes when I slowed down.


I said to my wife, "Really hope he gets over, no reason for him to stay there!" But, alas, he didn't. He cruised right on by that trooper vehicle in the driving lane, no obvious change in speed either. As we went by, the vehicle the trooper had stopped pulled into traffic, followed by the trooper. I thought, "Dang it, he's not going to get him."


Well I was glad to be wrong in this case. That trooper wasted no time making up the distance, swooped in front of me and got him.


Dumb story, I know but it gave me the satisfaction as a first responder and a chief that there were some people here in NY enforcing the new laws meant to protect us. It was also nice to have one of those "Where's a cop when you need one" moments.
 

wilsonbr90

Member
Sep 30, 2013
1,427
Corning, New York
Had a nysp vehicle with a car pulled over yesterday. Traffic was heavy but I slowed down and got over. I slowed the line of traffic down to 55. Lady was in front of me kept right on hauling in the driving lane. Did the old half lane 'Bob' as she drove by doing at least 65 as I'm yelling at her, admittedly to myself, "there's room lady, get the heck over" there wasn't a secondary officer sitting further down though. Some people just do t get it.
 

RescueWV

Member
Dec 31, 2010
337
Central PA
Going one step further, I saw a department back in West Virginia that was doing one of their targeted traffic/DUI operations which typically entailed 2-4 officers in separate vehicles working the same stretch of highway. I approached what I THOUGHT was a traffic stop and did my due diligence and move over, only to have the car behind me gun it, still in the right lane, flying past the traffic stop.


Only the thing is, what I thought was a traffic stop was REALLY a marked car with its lights on, sitting behind an unmarked SUV with its lights off. I wish I could have seen the driver's face when the SUV lit up and took off after him. :haha:
 

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