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If you're doing some driving over the holiday weekend, keep Florida's Move Over law in mind.
"You've seen videos of this where people that are driving crash into a trooper or a deputy or somebody that's on I-95 or a big expressway."
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw says that's the reason for the law.
"You've got so much distracted driving going on. They're on their phone or doing something that they shouldn't be doing and all of a sudden they look up and they're going off the road or swerving. It's a dangerous thing, especially when the deputy or the officer has got somebody pulled over. That's why it's important to slow down and move over."
The law is in effect for all multi-lane roadways, not just I-95 and the Turnpike. It requires drivers to move over one lane if there is a stopped police, emergency, utility, sanitation or construction vehicle with flashing lights on the shoulder closest to you.
And the law was updated last year to expand to ANY vehicle parked on the side of the road with hazard lights flashing, emergency flares of visible emergency signage.
According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, even disabled vehicles or a vehicle with a flat tire is protected under the Move Over law.
In 2024, there were 205 crashes and more than 17,500 citations issued for drivers failing to move over in Florida. And the sheriff says this law IS being enforced on Palm Beach County roads.
"The Aggressive Driving unit that I have that's out here...if they see it then they'll do something about it."
Violators of Florida's Move Over Law face a moving violation, typically fines starting at 158 dollars and could lead to three points on your license.