The in basket: Pemco Insurance raised my eyebrows with a short
item in its January newsletter, Perspective, which asserted that it
is illegal to pull to the shoulder to use a cell phone, read a map,
discipline children, change
drivers or take a bathroom break (??).
That struck me as a peculiar and contradictory piece of advice from
an insurance company, since we often are encouraged not to do those
things while driving.
The in basket: Pemco Insurance raised my eyebrows with a short item
in its January newsletter, Perspective, which asserted that it is
illegal to pull to the shoulder to use a cell phone, read a map,
discipline children, change
drivers or take a bathroom break (??).
I called the Perspective editor, who said he was flattered to learn
someone read it. He said he based the piece on RCW 47.52.120, which
applies to limited access highways. It said we’re not supposed to”
stop or park any vehicle or equipment within the right of way of
such facility, including the shoulders thereof, except at points
specially provided therefor, and to make only such use of such
specially provided stopping or parking points as is permitted by
the
designation thereof.” It exempted authorized emergency vehicles,
law enforcement vehicles, assistance vans, or to vehicles stopped
for emergency causes or
equipment failures.
That struck me as a peculiar and contradictory piece of advice,
since we often are encouraged not to do those things while driving.
I asked my law enforcement contacts if this could possibly be
right.
The out basket: Deputy Scott Wilson of Kitsap County Sheriff’s
Department called the article “understandable” as the law requires
that parking on the shoulder of a limited access facility be kept
to a very bare minimum. “You’ve noticed, I’m sure, that vehicles
left on the shoulders of these types of roads are marked or
‘tagged’ pretty quickly, by law enforcement, for removal,” he
said.
But, he continued, “Briefly stopping on the shoulder has become a
common practice for a variety of reasons: to adjust driver’s
position or equipment, change drivers, handle radio / compact disc
issues, attend to children in the rear seat, talk on cell phones,
text messaging, etc. As long as the stopped vehicle is not blocking
the roadway, common sense prevails: law enforcement would rather a
driver pull over to the shoulder and briefly stop for these reasons
than operate a vehicle in an unsafe manner, since a driver’s
attention would be divided between operating the vehicle and the
secondary task at hand.”
He says drivers should choose a spot where your car can be well off
the road, visible to approaching drivers for a long way, and where
pulling back onto the highway can be done safely. Activating one’s
flashers is a good idea, as is raising the hood if car trouble is
what caused you to pull over, he added. He admitted he didn’t know
where “a point specifically provided” to pull over might be.
Trooper Brian George agreed with Scott. “The Washington State
Patrol would encourage drivers to pull to the shoulder when they
are unable to focus their full attention to driving.” he said. “It
is much safer for a driver to stop on the shoulder and answer the
phone, look for a fallen CD, read a map or eat then to continue to
travel while distracted.”
