2006 General Assembly Traffic Safety Legislative Update

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2006 General Assembly Traffic Safety Legislative
Update

• Governors Transportation
• Legislative Liaison Asa James Swan

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New Traffic Safety Laws

• 1. HB 117 Primary Safety Belt Law, ATV Helmets
  Law
• 2. HB 90 Graduated Drivers License
• 3. SB 44 Quick Clearance
• 4. HB 278 Flashing Lights for Slow-moving
  Vehicles

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HB 117 Primary Safety Belt Law

• 1. Allows law enforcement to pull over and fine
  those who operate vehicles without wearing their
  safety belts beginning July 12, 2006.
• 2. Exempts vehicles manufactured since 1981.
• 3. Provides a six-month grace period where only
  warnings will be issued.
• 4. Beginning January 1, 2007, operators will
  receive a 25 fine for not wearing their safety
  belt.
• 5. At least 62 Kentuckians lives will be saved
  and 740 serious injuries prevented in the first
  year alone.

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HB 117 ATV Helmets Law

• Requires mandatory helmet use for children under
  sixteen who operate an ATV.

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HB 90 Graduated Drivers License

• 1. Extends protections of the current Graduated
  Drivers Licensing Program by creating an
  intermediate period of six months for teen
  drivers between the learners permit and full
  license.
• 2. This new intermediate license is a full
  license with two restrictions.
• 3. Night-time driving restriction must be
  supervised by a licensed adult driver between
  1200 and 600 am.
• a. Exempts emergencies, work, and school-related
  activities.

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HB 90 Graduated Drivers License

• 4. Passenger restriction intermediate drivers
  cannot drive with more than one unrelated teenage
  occupant.
• 5. To apply for a full license, drivers must be
  violation-free and complete a drivers safety
  class.
• 6. Exempts vehicles with farm tags if drivers are
  engaged in agricultural-related activities.
• 7. Will result in a 15 to 25 percent lower
  fatality rate among teen drivers, equating to 27
  Kentucky teens lives saved during the first year
  alone.

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SB 44 Quick Clearance

• 1. Quick clearance is the practice of rapidly and
  safely removing temporary obstructions from the
  roadway.
• 2. Four main components of Kentuckys quick
  clearance laws
• a. Driver stop law when in an accident, drivers
  must stop their cars without obstructing traffic
  as much as possible.
• b. Driver removal law in an accident with
  non-serious or no injuries, drivers must move
  their cars to the side of the road.

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SB 44 Quick Clearance

• 2. Four main components of Kentuckys quick
  clearance laws (cont.)
• c. Authority removal law the incident commander
  or surrogate authority at the accident scene can
  order the removal of vehicles to a safer place
  (even if the driver objects).
• d. Authority tow law same as authority removal
  except that it emphasizes removal to a legal
  parking area or safe refuge.

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SB 44 Quick Clearance

• 3. Applies to interstates and parkways only.
• 4. Kentucky is currently one of only ten states
  that does not have some form of quick clearance
  legislation.
• a. With the enactment of this bill, Kentucky
  becomes the only state in the nation besides
  Tennessee to have all four quick clearance laws.

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SB 44 Quick Clearance

• 5. Recognizes the pressing need to get the
  interstates and parkways moving again after an
  accident occurs. FHWA estimates that over 20 of
  accidents are secondary. Quick clearance laws
  greatly increase motorists' safety by getting
  everything moving again.

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SB 44 Quick Clearance

• 6. In an era of "just-in-time delivery, getting
  accidents handled quickly lessens the severe
  damage they cause our state economy. Our
  manufacturing sector depends on just-in-time
  delivery to get the parts it needs to make its
  products, and quick clearance laws will help save
  countless millions in economic activity from
  being lost.

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HB 278 Slow-moving Vehicles

• Slow-moving vehicles, such as horse-drawn
  carriages or buggies, must have red or
• yellow flashing lights at night.