Ontario Provincial Police will be out in force on highways across the province this long weekend with an eye out for drivers who fail to move over.
OPP say despite Ontario's Move Over law heading into its 20th year, every year, hundreds of drivers ignore this law and deny police and other emergency personnel the safe space they need to carry out their duties on the roadside.
In 2022, the OPP laid 846 charges against drivers who were in a position to, but failed to, slow down and move over a lane, where safe to do so, when approaching emergency vehicles stopped on the side of the road with their emergency lights activated.
The OPP has laid more than 600 such charges so far this year.
Since 1989, five OPP officers have been killed while on duty on the roadside after their vehicles were struck by approaching vehicles.
Ontario's Move Over law carries a $490 to $2,000 fine plus three demerit points upon conviction.
Subsequent offences carry a $1,000 to $4,000 fine, possible jail time of up to six months and suspension of your driver's licence for up to two years.