By By Lydia Grimes
features reporter
Motorists were given six months to become acquainted with the Move Over Law in Alabama, but time is running out on the grace period before enforcement.
The Move Over Law requires motorists to move over when motorists are approaching emergency vehicles that are stopped with their flashing emergency lights activated.
Alabama state troopers will begin issuing citations for violation of the Move Over Law on Feb. 1. The first ticket will cost the violator $25 and court costs. The fees will go up for repeated violations.
Cpl. Steve Smith, spokesman for the Alabama Department of Public Safety in Mobile, said the law was passed six months ago, but the public was given that time to adjust to it.
The Move Over Law is designed to help protect law enforcement and emergency personnel when they are working along roadways. The law originally included law enforcement and now includes all emergency personnel.
The law states that if there are four lanes or more, that motorists should move over one lane. If it’s unsafe to move over, motorists should slow down to a speed at least 15 mph below the posted limit. If there are only two lanes of traffic, the law requires that vehicles move over as far as possible without leaving the lane or slow down to a speed at least 15 mph below posted limit if speed limit is 25 mph or higher, or slow down to 10 mph if speed limit is 20 mph or less.