NWRA has collaborated with the General Accounting Office (GAO) on a study of state “Move Over” laws. NWRA is the industry’s primary advocate for “Move Over” laws through its “Slow Down to Get Around” legislative lobbying initiative. Move Over laws vary by state but generally require motorists, when approaching certain vehicles stopped on the roadside to either move over, or if unsafe to do so, slow down to an appropriate speed.
“We were honored to work with the GAO on this important project for our industry. While every state and the District of Columbia have ‘Move Over’ laws, only 31 states have laws that include waste and recycling collection vehicles,” said NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith. “Safety is the most important thing to us and that includes roadside safety. We hope this study will bring heightened awareness to this issue as we continue to advocate on behalf of our industry to enact these laws in the remaining 19 states and strengthen them in the states where they are already on the books.”
Among the findings in the report, the GAO found that despite education and targeted enforcement by states, public awareness of these laws remains low. The U.S. Department of Transportation, primarily through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Highway Administration, continues to help improve the safety of roadside workers, including providing support in the areas of public awareness, training, funding, coordination, and research.
NWRA continues to work with federal and state officials to raise awareness and educate the motoring public on the need to move over for waste and recycling collection vehicles as well as emergency and other covered vehicles.