As part of the national Move Over Day on Oct. 16, the Marathon County Highway Department reminds drivers to move over and slow down for stopped law enforcement, emergency and maintenance vehicles on the side of highways.
In 2020, even with decreased traffic during a pandemic, a work zone crash happened every 3.5 hours in Wisconsin, the highway department said.
Wisconsin’s Move Over Law requires drivers to shift lanes or slow down to provide a safety zone for a squad car, ambulance, fire truck, tow truck, utility vehicle or highway maintenance vehicle that is stopped on the side of a road with its warning lights flashing.
Over the past five years, there have been 13,000 work zone crashes, 59 deaths and more than 5,000 injuries in Wisconsin. On average, three out of five work zone fatalities are motorists, not workers, according to the highway department.
“We can all do our part to save lives by moving over and slowing down when we see a vehicle stopped on the side of the highway,” said James Griesbach, Marathon County Highway Commissioner. “Please do your part to help keep our highway workers, law enforcement, rescue workers and tow truck drivers safe.”
