NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — National ‘Move Over’ Day is this Saturday, Oct. 21 and Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas is asking drivers to pay attention to what's going on around them.
"Be aware of workers alongside the roads," Steward said. "Law enforcement, tow truck drivers, roadside construction crews, all those folks are working mere feet away from speeding traffic. It's just really important that we as drivers take their lives into consideration and have safety in mind and slow down and move over a lane to keep them safe."
According to data analyzed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, almost 2,000 people were killed in roadside crashes over the five-year period from 2017-2021, and nearly 1,500 of those deaths occurred after dark.
"Here in Kansas, 28 people died in roadside crashes while outside a disabled vehicle between 2017 and 2021," Steward said. "75% of those fatalities occurred after dark."
Kansas’ Move Over law requires all motorists to slow down and when possible, move over a lane, away from first responders, tow trucks, road maintenance, and utility vehicles at the roadside. Those who do not abide by the law are subject to a fine and court costs that can total $300 or more.
"One weakness of our law is it does not include stationary and disabled consumer passenger vehicles on the side of the road," Steward said. "For that reason, AAA Kansas and other traffic safety partners are leading an effort with Senate Bill 142 in the coming legislative session to include those disabled vehicles in the law and enhance the safety element for those vehicles on the side of the road."
Nineteen states already include stationary/disabled passenger vehicles in their Move Over law to protect individual motorists and passengers stranded along the road.
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