Published on Thursday, 19 March 2020 at 3:04:51 PM

With a number of wildfires, summer storms and car accidents the start to 2020 has been extremely busy for all of our emergency services volunteers and unfortunately there has also been a number of reports of where these important community members have been put at risk by speeding cars pass them as the go about their work on the road side.

Katanning RoadWise Committee Chairman Cr Danny McGrath said “We all have a role in keeping our Emergency Services volunteers and staff safe while they are responding to incidents on our roads. This is why State Government introduced the Slow Down & Move Over (SLOMO) law in 2018  to improve the road safety of people attending roadside emergencies in Western Australia.”

“The law requires motorists to reduce speed to a maximum of 40km/h when passing incident response vehicles with flashing lights and, where possible and safe to do so, move to the next lane.” said Cr McGrath.

Officer in Charge of the Katanning Police Station Senior Sergeant Brett Pengilly said “it is disappointing to see the lack of awareness around this law.  If you see flashing lights please slowdown”.

Moving forward to help educate the community about what they can do to help keep our Emergency Services safe the Katanning RoadWise Committee will be encouraging Local Governments and community groups throughout the region to distribute information about the laws via their social media and newsletters.

More information about the reasons for the SLOMO laws and what is required on motorists can be found on the Road Safety Commissions website https://www.rsc.wa.gov.au/Rules-Penalties/Browse/Emergency-Vehicles.

Back to All News