Personally I don’t know if the “law” really has had much impact except to remind people what they should have been doing all the time anyway. In Minnesota it wasn’t until a couple highway patrol were hit on the side of the road, that the law was passed. You shouldn’t need a law to tell you not to run into someone, especially with lights flashing. The law only allows someone to be fined and really shouldn’t have much impact on safe driving behavior.
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I actually got pulled over for that. I was in the middle lane, with my view blocked by a truck in front of me. I pulled to the right lane, and immediately saw an officer placing flares along the roadway. but too late to slow down or move over.
He came after me and pulled me over, but no ticket.
In my mind, it can have an impact on all three groups, but only because of the choices of Group 3. A Group 3 driver sees a situation and only thinks “move over” without the other parts - “only if it’s safe to do so or slow down.” Hopefully this driver has a bunch of Groups 1 and 2 around so he/she doesn’t hurt anyone else.
I tend to agree. On balance, it’s probably saved a few deaths or real tragedies, but caused a few accidents. We’d all rather have a totaled car than a death.
I generally agree, bing. The problem is that at highway speeds there is very little time to react. If emergency workers want us to slow down to ten or more mph under the limit when we pass them, I’m all for it. The law not only could save emergency worker lives, it can also save drivers that might have hit them a lifetime of grief from hitting the cops.
Police and two truck drivers are at high risk and the move over laws try to protect them. In PA move over if safe or slow down if you cannot change lanes
This was a few years ago like ten or fifteen, but my favorite tow truck driver said he would not tow off the interstate anymore. Just too dangerous. He sold his truck and went on to do something else.
Statistically, the shoulder of a high-speed road is a VERY dangerous place to spend any time.
Because of that reality, I am always fascinated (actually, I am horrified) when I see people whose idea of “pulling over” on the shoulder involves parking their vehicle on the line separating the shoulder from the right lane–even though they could have easily moved 2, or 3, or sometimes even 4 feet further from the traffic lanes.
These people are absolutely clueless.
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Do you think they look in the left side rear view mirror before opening their door?
Absolutely… NOT!
If they did do so, that would imply some level of awareness of the world around them, as well as good driving practices, so these clueless people park–literally–an inch or two from cars screaming past at 65, or 70, or 75 mph, and then they are mystified when someone whose attention is distracted winds-up impacting their vehicle.
That would be in a 50 mph zone, right?
Luckily my squad pullover or slow down in emergency situations has been good. It is a good law, and have seen more respect as deserved in day to day observations. No accidents noted.
Something I didn’t see mentioned in the conversation is how, in heavily traveled areas, those that think they must move over, slow both lanes down causing miles of back-up. I witness this often while driving I-81 in Virginia.
I guess you are saying the inconvenience of arriving a few minutes later for you is more important than a first responder being injured or worse by moving over.
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No, most of the time this takes place on Interstate highways, where the speed limit is 60 or 65 mph. Of course, the prevailing speed is between 70 and 75, but it is almost impossible to get a traffic summons unless one exceeds 75 mph.
In any event… why would some people park–literally–one inch away from high speed traffic, rather than pulling ALL the way to the right of the shoulder?
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The purpose of the slow down/move over laws are not to prevent accidents but to prevent fatalities.
As for backing up traffic on I-81 in Virginia, it doesn’t take much. The drivers there are so aggressive that by trying to be first to get by the obstruction and cutting off all other drivers, they can back up traffic for miles on a day when traffic is very light. I’ve never seen that phenomenon anywhere else.
+1
In NJ, about 10-12 years ago, we had a few incidents of road workers being–literally–mowed-down and killed by reckless/inattentive drivers. Before we got our version of the Move Over law, the state legislature mandated the presence of a marked police car–with its lights activated–at every road repair site.
The road workers appreciate it because they have been much safer, and the cops love it because this is an overtime assignment on days when they wouldn’t have been working.
I can think of better things to do on Christmas Eve than argue about this. I think I’ll go do one of those things now.
Merry Christmas 
!
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Here’s an article I wrote on it some time ago. I am a professional tower with more than 40 year of experience. Move Over laws cause more harm than good. https://www.facebook.com/notes/towtalknet/will-move-over-laws-help-probably-not/1206658319462476/
You are entitled to your opinion but I and many others think that the move over and slow down for roadside workers is a good practice .
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