During the most recent legislative session Indiana lawmakers made some
changes to existing traffic laws.
The first change involves Indiana’s “Move Over” law. Since 1999 motorists
have been required to move over to a non-adjacent lane for stopped emergency
vehicles, highway maintenance vehicles, and recovery vehicles (wreckers) on
multi-lane highways when the designated vehicles were displaying their
emergency lights.
If moving over is impossible due to construction, traffic, or other
hazardous conditions the law simply required motorists to slow down as they
passed the stationary emergency vehicle(s).
That law has now been modified, however, and it now specifically directs
motorists to slow down at least 10 miles per hour less than the posted speed
limit when moving over for stationary emergency vehicles is impossible.
In addition, emergency vehicles, highway maintenance vehicles, and recovery
vehicles, and utility vehicles have now been added to the list of stationary
vehicles for which motorists are required to yield when those vehicles are
stationary on multi-lane highways and displaying their emergency lighting.
Another new law, dubbed the “Move It” law, has increased a driver’s
responsibilities when involved in a crash. A person involved in a crash that
does not involve personal injury, fatality, entrapment, or movement of
hazardous materials and occurs on a federal interstate highway or a ramp
providing access to or from a federal interstate highway, is now required if
possible to move the vehicle off the highway or ramp to a location as close
to the accident as possible in a manner that does not obstruct traffic more
than is necessary. In other words, a person involved in a crash should try
to move the vehicle out of the traveled portion of the roadway, if possible.
These laws can be found in their entirety in the following Indiana Codes:
•9-21-8-35-Move Over law.
•9-26-1-2-Move It law.
Or go to
http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/
and enter the above codes into the box on the right side of the page.
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