Road Ranger truck struck on I-4 when driver fails to ‘move over,’ troopers say

DOVER — A pickup truck driver who failed to obey Florida’s “move over” law crashed into the back of a stopped Road Ranger vehicle on Interstate 4 early Saturday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The crash took place just after 7 a.m. on westbound I-4 near the McIntosh Road interchange.

A pickup truck driven by a 42-year-old Tampa man was headed west in the outside lane of I-4 approaching McIntosh Road.

Ahead, a Road Ranger pickup was parked in the outside lane of westbound I-4, its caution board and arrow board lit up, directing drivers to move over because the outside lane was closed. The 38-year-old ranger was cleaning up debris on the roadway, troopers said.

To get out of the outside lane, troopers say the 42-year-old Tampa driver attempted to pass another pickup in the center lane driven by a 50-year-old Lakeland Man. But the Tampa driver didn’t make it in time and struck the rear of the Road Ranger vehicle, according to the Highway Patrol.

The Road Ranger vehicle was pushed into the shoulder. The Tampa driver’s pickup then struck the right rear end of the Lakeland driver’s pickup. The Tampa driver’s pickup spun and ended up in the outside shoulder. The Lakeland driver’s truck rotated into the median and struck the center guardrail.

The ranger was not injured. The other two drivers were both wearing seatbelts and were also not injured.

The Tampa driver was cited for violating the move-over law, which requires motorists to move over and change lanes when they approach any stopped emergency, utility, sanitation or Road Ranger vehicles that have activated their emergency lights. The law requires drivers to leave the lane closest to the stopped vehicles, or if they can’t move over, slow down to 20 mph below the speed limit when they pass them.

The Highway Patrol did not release the names of those involved in the crash under its interpretation of Marsy’s Law, a state constitutional amendment designed to protect victims of crimes. The agency now omits the names of anyone involved in a crash, regardless of whether a crime was committed.