Move Over...It's the Law!

When approaching a stopped emergency vehicle from the rear...

Oregon law requires drivers to:

Move over into another lane if one is available or...

Slow down and give the emergency vehicle as much room as possible if you can not move over into another lane safely.

The fine for this violation is currently $242 ($355 if the location is within a designated Safety Corridor, School Zone or Work Zone).

Click here to watch a video on what officers face on the roadways.

811.147 Failure to maintain safe distance from emergency vehicle or ambulance; penalty.

(1) A person operating a motor vehicle commits the offense of failure to maintain a safe distance from an emergency vehicle or ambulance if the person approaches an emergency vehicle or ambulance that is stopped and is displaying required warning lights and the person:

(a) On a highway having two or more lanes for traffic in a single direction, fails to:

1. Make a lane change to a lane not adjacent to that of the emergency vehicle or ambulance; or
2. Reduce the speed of the motor vehicle, if making a lane change is unsafe.

(b) On a two directional, two-lane highway, fails to reduce the speed of the motor vehicle.

(2) The offense described in this section, failure to maintain a safe distance from an emergency vehicle or ambulance, is a Class B traffic violation. [2003 c.42 §2]