Drivers are used to slowing down when they see police cruisers, firetrucks and ambulances with flashing lights stopped on the side of the road.
But starting today, state law will require them to extend the same courtesy to any emergency vehicle stopped with flashing lights. That includes tow trucks, MassHighway crews and pick-up trucks used for emergency response.
Violators will face a $100 fine.
"This is not about raising revenue," said Buzz Seeley, automotive services director for AAA Merrimack Valley. "This is about making sure people go home to their families at night."
Two AAA tow truck drivers died after being struck on Interstate 495 in West Bridgewater in 2004. Statistics vary, but AAA figures that more than 100 emergency personnel are killed on the nation's roads every year, Seeley said.
Gov. Deval Patrick signed the Move Over Law in December and it takes effect today. When motorists see a stationary first responder unit with its lights flashing — such as a police cruiser, tow truck, fire engine or ambulance — they should move over so they are one lane away from the unit, if possible.
For example, if a person is driving in the right lane on the highway and they see a state trooper stopped in the breakdown lane with the lights flashing, the driver should move into the middle lane.
If the driver cannot change lanes, they are required to slow down to a "reasonable speed," which is defined as 20 miles per hour below the speed limit, Seeley said.
So if a person is on a road with one travel lane, the driver has to slow down because there's no other lane to move into, according to Seeley.
The law, which is similar to a New Hampshire law, specifically pertains to state roads.
"Common courtesy should dictate that same appropriate response should take place no matter where you're driving," Seeley said.
This is "common sense legislation," and drivers need to remember that first responders "have a family to go home to," Seeley said.
"A lot of times people are so wrapped up in their personal lives and trying to get where they need to go, sometimes it becomes easy to forget," he said.
Massachusetts is the 44th state to enact this law, Seeley said.
