By Maria Prato-Gaines, Staff Writer
CRANBURY — Starting next month, if drivers see an emergency vehicle’s lights flashing from the shoulder of the road, they will have three options: move over to the fast lane, slow down or receive a hefty ticket.
That’s due to recent “Move Over” legislation, which asks drivers to be wary of police, fire, public works and towing vehicles or face anywhere from a $100 to $500 fine, depending on the discretion of the local municipal court, said Cranbury Police Chief Ed Kahler.
This new legislation was introduced to the public at the State Police Troop D headquarters in Cranbury on March 25 as some of the township’s own officers attended in support of the changes.
”This has always been a problem for us,” Chief Kahler said. “We can’t even get in and out of our own vehicles to assist a driver. It’s a very unsafe condition.”
Whether it’s a traffic stop, a disabled vehicle or a routine workday for state or municipal employees, these responders should be able to do their jobs and at the end of the day still make it home alive, said Chief Kahler.
Although Chief Kahler could not recall a recent incident that involved one of his officers being in an off-the-shoulder collision with a passerby driver, many officers have lost their lives, nationwide, in that exact scenario.
”We are losing way too many officers due to traffic incidents,” he said.
Cranbury’s roads provide the exact conditions that could prove to be hazardous for officers with the vehicles traveling down Route 130 often at high rates of speed and travelers packing into the township’s secondary routes, he said.
”All along the turnpike and Route 130, it’s a very tight squeeze on the shoulder,” Chief Kahler said. “There’s just not a lot of room out there.”
Drivers who neglect to move over when they see an officer occupied with another vehicle could see a ticket in the mail as cameras automatically turn on once those emergency lights begin to flicker, he said.

