Sometimes, I get questions from readers that would be terrific on a law school exam, i.e., there are many different ways to answer the question depending upon which issue you identify and address. Here is one example that I received last week: “I have a problem with people deciding that they should be directing traffic. I could give you several examples of running into this, but the most common is when someone stops in the road and waves you to drive around them. They are never completely off the road, and passing them requires entering the oncoming lane. You should know that I do not tailgate, so I don’t feel like I’m crowding them to get out of my way. I very much dislike ever being put in this position, but my general rule is that if I can’t see, I don’t go. This typically upsets the self-appointed traffic cop. I’ve remained behind vehicles in a stand-off scenario several times.”
The reader then went further: “I understand that people are trying to be nice and helpful. However, I don’t feel that I should trust them with my life. I’m curious about the laws involved with trusting the guy with his arm hanging out the window. I understand that maybe he has a heavy load and is going to crawl up the hill. But I’m a patient gal. I’d really rather tag along behind. What about the Good Samaritan waving for me to travel into an area when I can’t see potential pedestrians or oncoming traffic? I’m pretty sure that a smile and a wave do not relieve me of my responsibility if I injure person or property. Am I just a big meanie that I want people to stop waving traffic?”
This common example is filled with potential pitfalls for the unwary motorist. First, it should be noted that a motorist generally cannot block a lane of traffic. Under Section 3351 of the Vehicle Code, it is unlawful for any person to stop or park a motor vehicle on a roadway in a commercial or residential district where it is “practicable” to stop or park off the roadway. If it is not “practicable” to stop or park off the roadway, a motorist still may not stop or park on a roadway unless the motorist provides “an unobstructed width of the highway opposite the vehicle [for] the free passage.” Moreover, the statute requires a stopped or parked motorist to provide a sight distance of “500 feet in each direction upon the highway.” Obviously, this section does not apply to a disabled vehicle as the motorist did not willfully or intentionally stop or park the disabled vehicle. In the example provided by the reader, the stopped non-disabled motor vehicle blocking a lane of traffic in a manner where there is not a clear sight distance is generally a violation of the Vehicle Code.
Second, there is nothing in the Vehicle Code that requires a motorist to obey or follow the traffic direction of a motorist who has unilaterally decided to block the roadway with his or her motor vehicle. It is a violation of the Vehicle Code to disobey an “authorized” traffic control person – but clearly an improperly stopped or parked motorist does not qualify for such a designation.
Third, as the reader properly noted, the idiocy (and illegality) of the other motorist does not provide a defense to a violation of the Vehicle Code. In the end, the operator of the motor vehicle remains responsible for compliance with the Vehicle Code. In this regard, a motorist cannot leave his or her lane of traffic “until the driver has first ascertained that the movement can be made with safety.” As the reader noted, the mere assurance from a “self-appointed traffic cop” who has illegally stopped or parked his motor vehicle does nothing to provide the motorist has fulfilled the duty to assure that it is safe to leave his or her lane of traffic.
Fourth, aside from the criminal side of the law, the potential civil liability for any traffic accident that arose under these circumstances would be significant. If you leave your lane of traffic in order to pass a stopped or parked vehicle and then cause an accident, the ultimate question in any civil litigation would be whether a reasonable motorist would have proceeded into the other lane of traffic blindly solely because a hand waving you forward from the parked vehicle. Undoubtedly, the illegally parked motorist – and terrible “self-appointed traffic cop” would face civil liability for the accident, but this would not mean that you would escape without some financial responsibility for the accident as well – and you may even end up being seriously injured or killed simply because you put faith in the traffic control skills of a person you do not even know.
The same analysis applies generally to passing a slow moving vehicle – a motorist cannot pass another vehicle unless and until the pass can be done safely. There is no exception in the Vehicle Code for reliance upon the “self-appointed traffic cop.” In the end, the responsibility – and liability – rests with the operator of the motor vehicle.
The general approach taken by the reader is eminently reasonable – even if it ends up being a “stand-off” between the “self-appointed traffic cop” and the law-abiding and conscientious motorist who will not make a pass until he or she knows that it can be safely done. It is also the approach that the Vehicle Code expects every motorist to follow.
Please submit any questions, concerns, or comments to Susquehanna County District Attorney’s Office, P.O. Box 218, Montrose, Pennsylvania 18801 or at our website www.SusquehannaCounty-DA.org or discuss this and all articles at http://dadesk.blogspot.com/.