During its recent enforcement and awareness campaign for Ohio’s Move Over Law, the Ohio State Highway Patrol issued some 586 citations between July 22 and July 28.
That campaign apparently didn’t reach everyone, as Channel 5 documented at the scene of a crash on I-77 last week where dozens of cars refused to move over or slow down as emergency crews worked on the side of the road.
On average, one cop, 23 highway workers, and five tow-truck operators are struck and killed by the side of the road every month. From 2013-2017, Ohio patrol cruisers were involved in 58 crashes that appear to be related to the Move Over law. The crashes resulted in the deaths of two civilians and injured 34 civilians and 24 officers.
As ODOT noted this morning, its crews have been struck four times in just the past two weeks.
Move the hell over and slow down. It’s not a courtesy, it’s the law. Also, citations come with a $300 fine, and you can’t afford that.This article appears in Aug 1-7, 2018.
