It doesn’t seem to be a law here on Australia but I have always moved over away from **any **stopped vehicle on roads with fast moving traffic. I remember, while I was learning to drive, some poor bastard got killed changing a tyre, clipped by a passing car. It’s a pretty scary occurrence getting out of a car on a virtual racetrack. So I assume everyone wants all the clearance they can get.
As has been mentioned, there’s two “move over” situations: the longest standing one being the “to the right [left, for those on the Brit-style pattern] for sirens and lights” rule-of-the-road which applies when*** we*** are being stopped, or need to get out of the way of emergency response vehicles; and the more recent one being the Law mandating move to a far lane or slowing down when passing where a response vehicle is stopped with flashers on, which is the one for protecting responders on the curb lane. The first one has been a rule since forever but AFAIK it was historically only penalized in the instance of refusing to make a stop ('cause generally speaking the ambulance crew or fire department had some bigger fish to fry than to stop to cite you).
The traffic laws in general have always included a caveat that you are free to move along following the posted limits/directions and road markings “so long as it is safe and prudent” to do so “taking the necessary precautions” or words to that effect - and much of defensive driving is simple courtesy, common sense, and cautionary principle - but enough drivers tend to gloss over that part that we sometimes have to pass legislation explicitly saying “Hey! You! Yes, you! Next time it’s gonna hurt ya to be careless about THIS particular thing”.
Around here, when you call for road assistance on an expressway/freeway or primary highway, the tow truck drivers will instruct you very specifically to stand fast and NOT attempt to change the tire or stand in front of your open hood trying to fix the problem while in the breakdown lane, and if the configuration allows it to better move as far away not just from the traffic lanes but off the paved surface altogether as you can without getting bogged down, until they get there. Speeding drunks will just wonder what are the flares/flags about before running them over and plowing into you anyway.
I agree with the laws in theory, but as a practical matter when is there ever NOT heavy traffic when there’s an emergency vehicle on the side of the road? Anything like that causes traffic to come to a standstill around here. So I always find myself in a situation where I’m locked into the right lane (bad, from this law’s standpoint), but where I’m forced to go very slowly by all the other cars around me (good).
Heh. I must commute at the right times because there’s never anyone in the left lane for very long (Upper Valley). 
Therefore I do move over for almost anything on the shoulder.
Here in Maine, it’s move over or slow down. You should move into the next lane, but if you’re unable to, you’re expected to slow down to, I think, 20 under the limit (I don’t remember the exact number).
It’s move over or slow down in MA. I know of electronic signs on 290 and the Pike which tell people about the law.
In the province of Alberta, (Canada) where I live, it’s either move over on lane, or slow to 60kph / 40 mph, for all emergency vehicles, including tow trucks when their yellow lights are on. They have signs up on the major highways, and I saw a speed trap once that was hidden behind a tow truck.
I’ve seen some signs in various states that don’t mention a specific law, but say something like “Move over for emergency vehicles.” This is timely because an acquaintance just talked his way out of a ticket for this last week. Apparently they take this very personal.
That link shows that my state, PA, has such a law. I wasn’t aware of the law but I’ve always instinctively moved over or slowed down if anyone was standing between a car on the shoulder and high speed highway traffic. It makes me nervous to zoom by that close to a person.
Stupidest law ever. On Wednesday my choices were to move over to the left lane on an icy highway and cause an accident or get a ticket that is apparently so serious a second offense carries 12 months jail time (Virginia). I plan to defend my innocence, but beings as I live in Maryland, this will require a return visit or hiring a lawyer.
Clearly another example of a law designed to protect that is being abused by the police for revenue gains.
Did you bother to read the law before posting? Those were not your only choices. If the roads were that icy that just changing lanes would cause an accident you should have been going slow enough to not run afoul of the law.
We have a Move Over law here in Arizona. There are public service announcements on TV several times a day, so I imagine most drivers are familiar with it.
I was well below the speed limit. It was a situation where I was dammed if I did and dammed if I didn’t.
New Jersey also has a Move Over law. However, it’s problematic.
To start with, the law is not widely publicized, which has led to some organizations decrying it as unfair, and a blatant method of extracting even more money from people. (http://moveoverlawvictims.org/).
**Issue #1 - ambiguous scope.
**
I personally have only seen mentions of the move over requirement on the major highways (NJ Turnpike and Garden State Parkway). It may be argued that considering the existence of additional motorist requirements for these major highways (i.e. rules that apply ONLY to the NJTP/GSP), and the lack of any notices/warnings/advisories on any local roads, or highway exits, a motorist may be led to believe that the Move Over Law applies only to the major highways, with their higher speed limits and therefore more dangerous conditions.
In other words, logically, a stopped emergency vehicle faces danger from passing motorists on the Turnpike, where the speed limit is 65 and everyone does 75-90… much less danger if stopped on a local road with a speed limit of 25-35.
**Issue #2 - discrimination against out-of-state drivers.
**
Even though many states have, by this point, enacted similar laws, their advisories are just as lacking as New Jersey. According to a nationwide Mason-Dixon poll, “71 percent of Americans have not heard of ‘Move Over Laws’” (http://moveoverlawvictims.org/).
So, an out-of-state driver coming through New Jersey and taking one of the local roads (where, as mentioned in #1, signage/warnings are nonexistent), would be in for a very unpleasant surprise. New Jersey did apparently conduct a “visibility campaign” for this law back in 2009, but if you weren’t there, you’d have a very small chance of being aware of this law.
**Issue #3 - ambiguous wording.
**
The law (New Jersey Statute 39:4-92.2) states:
*“(1) Make a lane change into a lane not adjacent to the authorized emergency vehicle if possible in the existing safety and traffic conditions; …”
*
“If possible …safety”. First, this seems to place the judgment squarely upon the motorist, which leaves a LOT of room for arguments in court; Second, the motorist needs TIME to look around and ascertain whether the lane change would be safe or hazardous. This is an actual defense in New York against this law; not sure how it would work in NJ (but I’ll find out in the next couple of weeks…)
The 2nd provision states:
“(2) If a lane change pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection a. of this section would be impossible, prohibited by law or unsafe, reduce the speed of the motor vehicle to a reasonable and proper speed for the existing road and traffic conditions, which speed shall be less than the posted speed limit, and be prepared to stop.”
If, in the judgment of the motorist, a lane change would be unsafe, i.e. vehicles present in the left lane, slowing down is a legal option. But again, ambiguous wording - what is a “reasonable and proper speed”? 25 MPH? 20? 10? 5? As far as I know, the 25-MPH breakpoint for most local speed limits is based on the survival criteria - if a person is hit by a vehicle traveling <25 MPH, their chances of dying are very slim; if hit at over 40 MPH, those chances increase dramatically.
One could argue (from a moral standpoint, I really wouldn’t recommend bringing this up in court unless you’re in a very adversarial mood & have nothing to lose) that, since the stated purpose of the law is to protect the emergency workers and police officers from deadly crashes, slowing down to 25 MPH or below is a sufficient safety measure, and the additional requirement of lane change is an undue burden that increases the possibility of accidents due to sudden lane changes from nervous motorists seeking to “escape the zone” of the stopped emergency vehicle.
In conclusion - there seem to be a few options for attacking this ticket in court. And it would be nice to start a class-action lawsuit based on the lack of visibility and unfair enforcement, just as a side thought.
Just my 3 cents (adjusted for inflation).
In some places, it doesn’t matter. I just got a ticket for the same law - a cop was stopped on the right shoulder, I was in right lane, but there was another cop in the left lane so I didn’t want to cut him off; I slowed down to 20, and the bastard still wrote me a ticket. Damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don’t kind of situation.
Well, I’ll be in court, arguing that given the choice of passing by safely, or jumping into the left lane & cutting off a cop, I took the LOGICAL and SAFE route, which incidentally complied with the 2nd part of the law as written (“if not safe to move over, then slow down”).
Yeah, but it’s instinct to want to see what’s going on. Furthermore, until you see enough to know the full situation, it’s PRUDENT to slow down when you see flashing lights. A number of times I’ve come to situations where I was glad I slowed down rather than blazing right past (even in the far lane).
Yeah, I feel your pain, but it’s human nature (based on ignorance and a sense of self-righteousness, not exactly admirable qualities). But I find that if I let myself get upset when people behave the way people behave, it doesn’t do me any good. I have to apply the same lesson when I pass someone, and they unconsciously speed up. Or when I’m following someone driving slowly on a two-lane road, who speeds way up in the straightaways where I’d have a chance to pass them. It’s annoying but it just doesn’t do any good to get frosted about it, so I try to laugh at myself instead.
As others have said, we have it in Wisconsin. I just assume every state has it. Makes sense. I’m never sure how much slowing down has to happen to count as slowing down though. Sometimes because of traffic or terrain you don’t see the situation until it’s too late to move over because someone else is in that lane and the best you can do is take your foot off the gas.
I wasn’t aware of such laws until last spring, when we took a drive across country (from California to Tennessee). I’m not certain which was the first state in which I saw a sign (I think it was Wyoming), but once I saw the first one it seemed like each and every time we crossed into a new state there would be a sign within the first mile stating that such a state law existed. Of course, nearly every car on the road followed the laws, so it didn’t take long for it to become second nature for me.
On our return trip, just after we passed into California I saw a sign alerting drivers to move over for stopped emergency vehicles (but as a caution, not stated as a law). I don’t do a tremendous deal of interstate travel, but I’ve driven out of California and back quite a few times in my life, and never saw any such signs upon re-entering the state before; I must therefore conclude that my state only just got around to promoting the idea during the 2 weeks that I was gone.
There wasn’t a move-over law in Indiana when I started driving. I did it anyway, because it’s common sense. If I was pinned in and couldn’t move over a lane, I slowed down. I’m glad it’s a law, but honestly the only reason it IS a law is because there are a lot of really bad drivers out there.
Same thing with moving emergency vehicles. It’s pretty obvious that you need to pull over and stop, or do whatever you need to do in order to clear a path for them (get out of the intersection, etc.)…yet some people fail to grasp the concept. If you were supposed to keep driving like normal, they wouldn’t bother with all the lights and sirens.
EDIT: Sorry, I didn’t realize this was an old thread (relevantly, as to ataraxy, 2013).
If you didn’t google VA’s law, it may be that you did not violate it.
Section 46.2-921.1 of the Code of Virginia states:
§ 46.2-921.1. Drivers to yield right-of-way or reduce speed when approaching stationary emergency vehicles on highways; penalties.
A. The driver of any motor vehicle, upon approaching a stationary vehicle that is displaying a flashing, blinking, or alternating blue, red, or amber light or lights as provided in § 46.2-1022, 46.2-1023, or 46.2-1024 or subdivision A 1 or A 2 of § 46.2-1025 shall (i) on a highway having at least four lanes, at least two of which are intended for traffic proceeding as the approaching vehicle*, proceed with caution and, if reasonable, with due regard for safety and traffic conditions, yield the right-of-way by making a lane change into a lane not adjacent to the stationary vehicle *or (ii) *if changing lanes would be unreasonable or unsafe, proceed with due caution and maintain a safe speed for highway conditions. *
B. A violation of any provision of this section shall be punishable as a traffic infraction, except that a second or subsequent violation of any provision of this section, when such violation involved a vehicle with flashing, blinking, or alternating blue or red lights, shall be punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor.
C. If the violation resulted in damage to property of another person, the court may, in addition, order the suspension of the driver’s privilege to operate a motor vehicle for not more than one year. If the violation resulted in injury to another person, the court may, in addition to any other penalty imposed, order the suspension of the driver’s privilege to operate a motor vehicle for not more than two years. If the violation resulted in the death of another person, the court may, in addition to any other penalty imposed, order the suspension of the driver’s privilege to operate a motor vehicle for two years.
D. The provisions of this section *shall not apply in highway work zones *as defined in § 46.2-878.1.