Illinois: Drivers can save lives by changing lanes

Every six days, a tow truck driver is killed on the job. Some say those could be prevented if drivers followed the law.

Scott's Law doesn't just apply to emergency vehicles. It's also for tow trucks and highway workers. An Urbana driver says not all drivers are following the rules of the road.

When your car breaks down, you turn to people, like this guy, for help.

"I care about people's safety."

Taylor Feldkamp has been on the job of towing cars for ten years. he says one thing he sees too often is drivers breaking the law.

"They don't slow down, they're kind of in their own little world. They don't recognize the lights. They don't recognize the cones."

That law is Scott's Law. It states, if an emergency vehicle, tow truck or highway vehicle is on the side of the road, drivers need to get over, but Feldkamp says some people aren't doing that.

"Those cones are designed for when you're coming up at night time or day time, you should see those cones within a couple thousand feet. You can move over left or right, depending on what side of the tow truck the highway is on."

He says drivers might not be following the law, but he and his employees are. Feldkamp says, if you were in his shoes, you'd see the situation differently.

"The scariest part is there's only about six inches between where you're getting underneath the car at and the people that are whizzing by."

He says he and his drivers have had some close calls and seeing the cones earlier, rather than later, could stop those from happening.

"That's the worst, when you're trying to get over because everybody is trying to get over."

It's not just his life he's worried about.

"All it takes is one person to ruin everybody's life out here. Save yourself from a ticket. Save yourself and lives. There's about 450 tow truck drivers that get killed by what you just witnessed right here."

In just 20 minutes, there were more than a dozen drivers who stayed in their lane and didn't move over.

If you're caught committing this crime, the first fine is up to $10,000. Also, a driver's privileges may be suspended for 90-days to a year, 180-days to two years if there's an injury and two years if someone is killed.