Tow operator optimistic government will extend move-over law to protect industry

A New Brunswick tow truck operator is optimistic the province will implement changes to its move-over law  recommended last year that could help protect the industry. 

 Andrew Aker, co-owner of Capital Towing in Hanwell, said discussions with the previous Liberal government resulted in recommendations to update the Motor Vehicle Act.

He hopes the Progressive Conservative government that took power in November will act on those recommendations. 

 "We're hoping to nudge the government along a little bit to see whether they're going to follow up on what was done during the Liberal tenure," said Aker. "I think there's reason for optimism." 

The "move-over" provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act enacted in 2013 require drivers to slow down and move to the left when fire trucks, ambulances and police vehicles are stopped with their emergency lights activated. Tow trucks aren't covered by the law. 

Aker said a tow truck driver was injured in a crash on the Trans-Canada Highway in Moncton on Tuesday — a reminder of the dangers of working on the side of highways as vehicles zoom past.  

"I think if we just relax and say we got lucky (Tuesday) and we don't look to make changes or accept suggestions on how we can improve the situation, we've lost an opportunity," Aker said.

Last March, PC MLAs Ernie Steeves and Carl Urquhart introduced a motion calling on the Liberal government to add tow trucks, carry out an education campaign on the law and add roadside signs.

"We are asking for it to happen for sure so that people know that they have to move over," Steeves said in the legislature March 15. "It is a small ask. It is a cheap ask, and we are asking that the government please respond in a positive way to this motion."

It passed with Liberal support for improved education. Because it was only a motion and not a bill, the law didn't change.

Urquhart is now the province's public safety minister and Steeves finance minister. 

Province reviewing law

CBC requested an interview with Steeves and Urquhart on Wednesday. No interviews were provided.

Alexandra Davis, a spokesperson for the public safety department, said in an emailed statement the province is reviewing move-over provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act. Davis said it is also looking at the rules in other provinces. 

Tow trucks were added to move-over rules in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island last year. Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Manitoba are among other provinces with similar rules, according to the Canadian Automobile Association. 

In Nova Scotia, the law is broader than in New Brunswick. 

It covers public safety officers, tow truck operators, emergency personnel, conservation officers and motor vehicle inspectors. It also requires drivers to slow down to at least 60 km/h for vehicles pulled over with emergency lights activated.

Aker said a weakness of New Brunswick's law is that it doesn't specify a speed for drivers who are passing emergency vehicles.

Nova Scotia's changes followed the death of Francis Deschênes. The Amherst-based Mountie was killed when he was hit by a cargo van on Sept. 12, 2017 on the Trans-Canada Highway south of Moncton. He was helping a motorist change a flat tire.

The Mountie worked for a traffic unit and had promoted move-over laws in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Originally from northern New Brunswick, he was in the process of being transferred to Codiac RCMP in Moncton. 

Deschênes widow, Savannah Deschênes, went to Nova Scotia's legislature to support move-over changes and has also lobbied for changes in New Brunswick.

Steeves said last year he introduced the motion in the New Brunswick legislature after being contacted by Savannah Deschênes.

She still hopes the province will implement the change. 

"I think the government needs to promote, promote, promote such as put signs up, do mail outs and put this in the young drivers handbook/testing," Savannah Deschênes said in a Facebook message Wednesday. "This would be a start."