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Move over or get pulled over
[April 15, 2025]
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State
Police (ISP) and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT)
are warning drivers to Move Over or Get Pulled Over. The Move Over
Law, known as Scott’s Law in Illinois, requires drivers to move over
and slow down when approaching a stationary emergency vehicle with
its emergency lights activated. If changing lanes is unsafe or
impossible, drivers must slow down to a safe speed, proceed with
caution, and be prepared to stop if necessary.
“We’ve all heard it, move over and slow down for emergency vehicles
on the side of the road with their emergency lights activated,” said
ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “Despite this, we continue to see
to crashes, including deadly crashes, because someone refused to
move over and slow down. To help end this reckless behavior, we
want the public to know that if you fail to move over and slow down
in Illinois, you will get a ticket. The days of receiving a
warning are over. Move over or get pulled over.”
The Move Over Law not only applies to law enforcement vehicles, but
ambulances, fire vehicles, IDOT Emergency Traffic Patrol vehicles,
tow trucks, and other authorized emergency vehicles as defined under
the Illinois Vehicle Code. However, ISP and IDOT urge drivers to
move over and slow down for any vehicle with flashing lights stopped
on the side of the road.
“The main goal of the Move Over Law is to eliminate preventable
crashes, injuries and deaths,” said Acting Illinois Transportation
Secretary Gia Biagi. “But the easiest way is to please slow down
and give plenty of extra distance to people and vehicles on the side
of the road. With your help, we can make our highways and streets
safer for everyone.”
When seatbelt laws first took effect in the 1980s, adoption of this
life saving practice was slow. To increase compliance with the law
and reduce the number of unnecessary traffic deaths, law enforcement
began issuing citations, not warnings, when there was sufficient
evidence seatbelts were not being used. Today, seatbelt use is
commonplace, in large part because of the strict enforcement of
seatbelt laws, and many lives have been saved. ISP and IDOT are
looking to make the automatic response to move over and slow down
for an emergency vehicle as commonplace as wearing a seatbelt.
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To provide advanced notice that
a driver needs to move over and slow down because of an
emergency vehicle stopped on the road ahead, ISP partnered with
Google Public Sector and HAAS Alert to provide a warning to
drivers through apps like Waze and Google Maps, as well as
through certain vehicle onboard infotainment systems, including
Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Mercedes-Benz, RAM, and Volkswagen.
The fine for a Move Over Law violation is between $250-$10,000.
If the violation results in the injury or death of another
person, it’s a felony and driving privileges could be suspended
up to two years.
Already in 2025, ISP has suffered
five move over crashes resulting in four troopers injured. Since the
beginning of 2019, ISP has suffered 71 Move Over Law injury crashes,
including three troopers killed. There were hundreds more Move
Over Law crashes over those years involving fire and IDOT vehicles,
ambulances, tow trucks, and others.
The Move Over Law is named Scott’s Law in Illinois in remembrance of
Lieutenant Scott Gillen of the Chicago Fire Department. Gillen was
struck and killed by an intoxicated driver while assisting at a
crash on the Dan Ryan Expressway.
More information about Illinois’ Scott’s Law can be found on the
ISP website, as well as a
Scott’s Law dashboard that includes information and data about
ISP crashes.
[Text received from Illinois State
Police] |
