In the state of Ohio, if drivers see a vehicle on the side of the road with flashing lights, they must move over to an adjacent lane if possible and slow down. That includes any law enforcement or crews out on the roads like the Ohio Department of Transportation.
Many drivers are aware of this Move Over Law, but research from AAA suggests that many others are not. According to that study done by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 42% of the drivers they polled thought that driving near pulled over vehicles was not dangerous and 23% were not even aware of a Move Over Law in their state.
Ohio is one of 43 states that have a Move Over Law in place.
But why is moving over and slowing down so important? The Lima post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol says that they have officers out on the roads all the time, and don't want anyone to get hurt.
"We’re out here and we’re just trying to keep the road safe, we have business out here," said Lt. Tim Grigsby with the OSHP Lima post. "We’re just asking the public to make sure that they are obeying the law, and it’s not a very difficult concept - when you see lights flashing, slow down, pay attention, get over if you can."
Crews with ODOT are asking the public much of the same as they continue construction work, especially out on the highways and interstates throughout Ohio.
"So far this year in 2021, we’ve had 109 crews struck in Ohio work zones, so it's important that people try to move over if they can, and if they're not able to, they slow down so that we can try to protect people from being struck while they're out there," said Kylie Schnipke, traffic engineer with ODOT District 1.
The Highway Patrol reminds drivers that the law is strictly enforced and asks that you move over once you see the lights to avoid issues as you get closer to the pulled over vehicle.
