# How many dopers know what "move over" laws are, and if they apply to the state they drive in?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [January 6, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217 "2013-01-06T02:31:22Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/1 "2013-01-06T02:31:22Z")
I have to admit I did not know these laws were in effect in my state.
I was reading [this local news item](http://www.examiner.com/article/jersey-driver-stopped-for-traffic-violation-md-busted-with-350-lbs-of-pot)and realized I had no clue what exactly the driver was required to do.
> [@](#):
>
> The investigation began shortly before 4:30 p.m. on December 30, 2012. A trooper from the Berlin Barrack was on the slow shoulder of southbound Rt. 113 near Berlin, Md. He was stopped in his unmarked patrol vehicle, but had his emergency red and blue lights activated, which were visible to passing traffic.
>
> The trooper observed a Toyota Sienna van pass his patrol car and fail to move over into an available lane, which is a violation of the state’s move over law
.
[So I wiked it up](http://www.nationalsafetycommission.com/move-over-america.html)and found
> [@](#):
>
> According to a national poll by Mason Dixon Polling & Research, sponsored by the National Safety Commission:
> 71 percent of Americans have not heard of “Move Over” laws;
> 86 percent support enacting “Move Over” laws in all 50 states; and
> 90 percent believe traffic stops and roadside emergencies are dangerous for law enforcement and first responders.
>
> The poll was conducted among 625 registered voters from June 23-25. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percent. [For inquiries regarding the poll’s methodology, please contact Brad Coker of Mason Dixon at 904-261-2444].
>
> Forty states have passed “Move Over” laws, which require motorists to “Move Over” and change lanes to give safe clearance to law enforcement officers on roadsides. If drivers can’t change lanes or are driving on a two-lane road, they must slow down at least 20 m.p.h. under the posted speed limit. If drivers do not move over or slow down, officers can and do write citations.
Does your state have a move over law? Check here.
> **[Move Over America | Protect Law Enforcement Officers](https://www.moveoveramerica.com/)**
>
> move over law
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### Author:  [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/2 "2013-01-06T02:36:54Z")
I don’t know or care if California does; I move over. I know that Minnesota and Wisconsin, where I’ve done most of my driving for the past 20 years, have them, which is where I learned about it.
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### Author:  [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/3 "2013-01-06T02:40:10Z")
My state has one. I think there are signs. The governor was even ticketed for violating it a few years before his election. Once he was governor, he turned it into a public spectacle by making a rude comment about the police officer.
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### Author:  [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/4 "2013-01-06T02:41:53Z")
I was not aware there were such laws, but common sense, safety and courtesy suggests that you should take reasonable measures to avoid hitting a police vehicle. I certainly do.
Mousing over that map, it looks like most laws were implemented since 2001. That suggests to me that there was a concerted, organized, nationwide movement to pass such, not just legislation passed at random times or when some state rep thought of it.
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### Author:  [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/5 "2013-01-06T03:08:24Z")
My mother just learned about this law the hard way. A $600 ticket.
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### Author:  [@steviep24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steviep24)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/6 "2013-01-06T03:10:36Z")
New York’s[Move Over Law](http://www.lawserver.com/law/state/new-york/ny-laws/ny_vehicle_traffic_law_1144-a)
Penalties are steep too. $275.00 fine and 3 points on your driver’s license for first time offenders, higher fine for repeat offenders. When this law was originally proposed a few years ago legislators considered jail time as well.
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### Author:  [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/7 "2013-01-06T03:18:11Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#):
>
> I don’t know or care if California does; I move over. I know that Minnesota and Wisconsin, where I’ve done most of my driving for the past 20 years, have them, which is where I learned about it.
In Wisconsin as well:
I suppose I didn’t know it was a ‘law’, but just about every (marked) police/sheriff/trooper vehicle has a “Move over or slow down” bumper sticker on it. Actually, even a lot of municipal vehicles have them as well. 'Round here, you’d have to be pretty oblivious to not be aware that you’re supposed to be doing that.
What bugs me is the people that seem to think it’s ‘move over _and_ slow down’. If we’re on a two lane 40mph highway going about 45mph and you see someone pulled over, you don’t have to move into the left lane and slow down to 33mph. You’re trying not to clip the officer, you don’t need to worry that he’s going to jump out in front of you. But sometimes I think that’s just the “Cop! gotta slow down so I don’t get a ticket, regardless of how fast I’m currently going” mentality.
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### Author:  [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/8 "2013-01-06T03:21:43Z")
> [@astro](#):
>
> Does your state have a move over law? Check here.
>
> [http://www.moveoveramerica.com/](http://www.moveoveramerica.com/)
That’s an astonishing video they show at the start of that. :eek:
I can’t believe he manages to immediately get up.
* * *
When I first heard about this law, it didn’t make sense to me, in that why is it for police officers specifically? What if regular joe’s car has broken down?
But I guess in traffic stops there’s a lot more going on; the parties involved can’t give full attention to the road. They may get in and out of their cars repeatedly. And, crucially, the cop probably needs to get out on the traffic side to get a decent view into the car he’s pulled over. So, on reflection, it has my support. 🙂
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### Author:  [@steviep24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steviep24)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/9 "2013-01-06T03:23:12Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#):
>
> In Wisconsin as well:
> I suppose I didn’t know it was a ‘law’, but just about every (marked) police/sheriff/trooper vehicle has a “Move over or slow down” bumper sticker on it. Actually, even a lot of municipal vehicles have them as well. 'Round here, you’d have to be pretty oblivious to not be aware that you’re supposed to be doing that.
>
> What bugs me is the people that seem to think it’s ‘move over _and_ slow down’. If we’re on a two lane 40mph highway going about 45mph and you see someone pulled over, you don’t have to move into the left lane and slow down to 33mph. You’re trying not to clip the officer, you don’t need to worry that he’s going to jump out in front of you. But sometimes I think that’s just the “Cop! gotta slow down so I don’t get a ticket, regardless of how fast I’m currently going” mentality.
People slow down because of rubber necking. It gets rather annoying really.:rolleyes:
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### Author:  [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/10 "2013-01-06T03:30:59Z")
> [@steviep24](#):
>
> People slow down because of rubber necking. It gets rather annoying really.:rolleyes:
Ya know, I can understand rubber necking, but it’s pointless when the person is just getting a ticket. A car accident, sure, glance over and take a look. Everyone is curious, but don’t slow down, just keep moving. I’ve always wished there was some way to ticket people for doing that. It drives me nuts when I’m caught in a traffic jam for a few minutes only to find out that someone was getting a speeding ticket and the traffic breaks as soon as we pass the squad with it’s lights on.
Even funnier is when I’m driving and the person in front of me slams on his breaks and slows way down for no apparent reason. Then a quarter mile later we pass a cop with someone pulled over, on the other side of the road and I figure the person in front of me must have a radar detector that must have been going off.
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### Author:  [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/11 "2013-01-06T03:32:41Z")
> [@Mijin](#):
>
> When I first heard about this law, it didn’t make sense to me, in that why is it for police officers specifically? What if regular joe’s car has broken down?
>
> But I guess in traffic stops there’s a lot more going on; the parties involved can’t give full attention to the road. They may get in and out of their cars repeatedly. And, crucially, the cop probably needs to get out on the traffic side to get a decent view into the car he’s pulled over. So, on reflection, it has my support. 🙂
btw I was specifically thinking about dangerous situations like passing a broken down car on the freeway/motorway. Obviously a blanket “move over if any car is parked, ever” law wouldn’t work too well.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/12 "2013-01-06T03:35:47Z")
> [@steviep24](#):
>
> New York’s[Move Over Law](http://www.lawserver.com/law/state/new-york/ny-laws/ny_vehicle_traffic_law_1144-a)
>
> Penalties are steep too. $275.00 fine and 3 points on your driver’s license for first time offenders, higher fine for repeat offenders. When this law was originally proposed a few years ago legislators considered jail time as well.
I think New Yorkers are probably better informed on this than average because the law was amended recently and there’s been a public service ad campaign informing people of the current law.
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### Author:  [@Hbns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hbns)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/13 "2013-01-06T03:36:46Z")
> [@Mijin](#):
>
> When I first heard about this law, it didn’t make sense to me, in that why is it for police officers specifically? What if regular joe’s car has broken down?
We’ve had a move-over law for several years, but I was taught from the beginning to move over (when safe to do so) for any vehicle on the side of the road. It’s the courteous thing to do, buys you extra space and time to deal with the unexpected, and telegraphs to the other vehicle that you have noticed them.
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### Author:  [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/14 "2013-01-06T03:39:29Z")
Indiana has had a “Move Over/Slow Down” law for most of the years I’ve been driving, instituted shortly after a few trooper fatalities. Signs, both roadside and electronic, advertise it throughout the state. Here it’s applicable both to emergency vehicles and law enforcement (red, red/white, red/blue lights), and stationary service vehicles with flashing yellow lights.
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### Author:  [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/15 "2013-01-06T03:58:57Z")
I was surprised when I learned recently that there was a law for this; I guess I assumed that everyone already knew you were supposed to do it. It was definitely emphasized in my high school drivers ed class (in the late 1980s) in NY state, and it was one of the things my parents would mention a lot when I was a young driver.
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### Author:  [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/16 "2013-01-06T04:49:46Z")
I knew about this because the states I’ve lived in both had signs about it on the electronic road signs. Makes sense.
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### Author:  [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/17 "2013-01-06T05:17:09Z")
I first heard about this a few years ago, when the CT law became effective. I thought all 50 states had these laws now…
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### Author:  [@azraiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/azraiel)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/18 "2013-01-06T05:18:13Z")
> [@astro](#):
>
> I have to admit I did not know these laws were in effect in my state.
>
> I was reading [this local news item](http://www.examiner.com/article/jersey-driver-stopped-for-traffic-violation-md-busted-with-350-lbs-of-pot)and realized I had no clue what exactly the driver was required to do.
>
> .
>
> [So I wiked it up](http://www.nationalsafetycommission.com/move-over-america.html)and found
>
> Does your state have a move over law? Check here.
>
> [http://www.moveoveramerica.com/](http://www.moveoveramerica.com/)
I’m going to respond without checking, because I _think_ I know what my state’s law is.
When approaching an emergency vehicle with lights activated and stopped on the side of the road, drivers must either move to a further lane (if in the adjacent lane and on a multi-lane road) or (if changing lanes is not possible) slow to a reasonable speed, proceeding cautiously. If approaching such a vehicle on a road with a single lane in each direction, the driver must slow down and proceed with the utmost caution.
Now Ima check your link.
Yup. Pretty much nailed it. I have a CDL, so I _have_ to have a good grasp of traffic laws in my state. I just wish others had a similar grasp.
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### Author:  [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/19 "2013-01-06T05:20:11Z")
NH has this. They placed large electronic signs on the highways advising motorists just before the law went into effect.
As someone who cruises in the right lane during my long commute, I hate how motorists in the left lane make no effort at all to let you in.
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### Author:  [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2013, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217/20 "2013-01-06T06:15:04Z")
I only learned of this very recently, from a friend who’s a truckie. He talked his way out of a ticket for it, by explaining that he _couldn’t_ move over, as someone was in the next lane already.
Heck, I’m amazed at how many people don’t know to move out of the way of an approaching emergency vehicle – the other kind of “move over” law. It sometimes seems like an age test: the older drivers all pull over to the curb to let a fire truck go past, and the younger drivers just…don’t.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-dopers-know-what-move-over-laws-are-and-if-they-apply-to-the-state-they-drive-in/646217.md?page=2)