Slow down and move over for roadside workers (NY)

[TowZone]

"These workers, when you consider their workspace right on the side of the road, are put in danger everyday because drivers aren't slowing down and moving over, which is law in New York State"

 

Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Doing roadside work, like operating a tow truck on the side of a busy highway, is much more dangerous than one would think.

 

On average, two emergency responders, including tow workers, are struck and killed every month by a driver who fails to obey the law by moving over to an adjacent lane and allowing the roadside rescuers the space to operate, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

 

"These workers, when you consider their workspace right on the side of the road, are put in danger everyday because drivers aren't slowing down and moving over, which is law in New York State," said Western and Central New York AAA's Elizabeth Carey. "It says you must slow down. If it's safe, move over if you see a tow truck worker, police officer or maintenance worker on the side of the road."

 

The AAA Foundation surveyed tow workers, emergency responders, and road maintenance workers on their experiences with roadside jobs. Of those surveyed, 60% had experienced a near miss while working at the roadside, while an alarming 15% had survived being hit by a passing vehicle.

 

Carey mentions that 71% of of Americans are saying they're unaware that these laws, like the move over law, even exist. "We had roadside workers that have been struck. We've even had roadside workers that have lost their lives," Carey said. "We have a driver named Marty Taylor, who died in Central New York several years ago, when a driver failed to slow down and move over. So this is a life threatening situation. People need to pay attention, put the phones down, and make sure they obey the law."

 

In addition to polling roadside workers, the AAA Foundation has studied several countermeasures, including an electronic vehicle-mounted variable message sign (VMS) which has been reported to be highly effective. The odds of a vehicle moving over were 95% higher when these signs were used.

 

"What we do right now is we use guardian angel lights, where the drivers actually put lights right on their body," Carey explains. "So people see that we use blue lights, where they're allowed, we use flashing lights and we put signs up saying that we're on the side of the road. We're just asking everyone to try and make them aware of this so that they know that this is a danger, and they could be putting other people at risk and we're hoping that education will help save lives."

 

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[TowZone]

Tow truck driver weighs in on Move Over Law