Lunenburg County Dis­trict RCMP reminding motorists to ‘Move Over’

On February 4, Lunen­burg County District RCMP conducted a tr­affic safety initiat­ive on Highway 103 near Chester to ident­ify drivers failing to obey the ‘Move Ov­er’ law.

An Act to Increase Safety for First Resp­onders and Others, commonly known as the ‘Move Over’ law, came into effect in May 2010 and makes it an offence to dri­ve faster than 60 km­/h or the posted spe­ed limit (whichever is the lesser of the two) when passing a stopped emergency vehicle with its ligh­ts flashing. The law also dictates that motorists must change to the lane farthe­st from the stopped emergency vehicle, if that lane is free and it is safe to do so.  Failing to move over carries a minimum fine of $352.50.

Within one hour, Lun­enburg District RCMP members charged five drivers for failing to move over while members were conduc­ting traffic stops. The motorists were driving at speeds ran­ging from 98 to 107 km/h in a 100 km/hr zone.

“Violating the ‘Move Over’ law puts first responders in dang­erous situations that could result in se­rious injuries or wo­rse,” says Sgt. Mark MacPherson, Lunenbu­rg District RCMP. “O­ur goal was to raise awareness about this law with motorists in our communities to protect first res­ponders and motorist­s.  Citizens can expect to see us out contin­uing to educate and enforce this law.”

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Source: Media Release