WINTER suRvIval guide
Steer Clear
How you can help tow operators do
their jobs—and arrive home alive
AMA tow operator
Nick Harper keeps
an eye on traffic
Room
to WoRk
Tow operator Nick
Harper shares his
tips about breakdowns
• When you see flashing
lights or a broken down
vehicle ahead, move over
a lane if it’s safe to do so
• Pylons and other safety
equipment are there to
provide safety for everyone on or near the road
• Be aware that roadside
operators may be working
in a traffic lane
50
WINTER 2016
AMA INsIdER
lane—running over the pylons and
flares and narrowly missing hitting
my truck at highway speed.”
This is just one of the many scary
situations tow operators face on a
daily basis.
The rules of the road are clear:
Motorists must slow to 60 kilometres
per hour (or less if the posted limit is
lower than 60) in the lane adjacent
to a parked tow truck with lights
flashing. If possible, drivers should
also try to move to the far lane to give
operators room to work safely.
But we can—and should—do
more. If you see something on the
side of the road—a tow truck, any
other vehicle, a cyclist, pedestrian or
something you can’t quite make out—
immediately reduce your speed and
safely move over as far as possible,
preferably changing lanes.
Drivers who have a breakdown
should also take a few precautions.
• Slow down and, in some
cases, be prepared to stop
without much warning
• Remember there may be
several people working at
a scene. You might only
see one, but there are
often more operators there
• We can each do our part
to make the roadside a safe
place to work. See how at
ama.ab.ca/RoomToWork
Try to get your vehicle as far off the
road as possible and turn on your
four-way flashers. Then assess the
safety of your situation—locate a
spot where you’re least likely to be in
harm’s way if another driver smashes
into you.
Slow down. Move over. And give
tow operators the room they need to
work. To learn more, visit ama.ab.ca/
RoomToWork.
Paul SWanSon
Calgary tow operator
Nick Harper received a call for a broken-down vehicle in the right-hand
lane of Stony Trail near Deerfoot
Trail. The six-year veteran of AMA
arrived on scene and marked the
surrounding area with safety cones
and flares—enough to be seen from
a far distance.
“Shortly after lighting and placing
my last flare between each pylon,
I noticed a vehicle still in the right
lane,” Harper says. He notes that’s
usually not a concerning sight, as
most people slow down or move over,
as provincial law states. But this particular vehicle was speeding up to get
in front of traffic in the left lane.
“When the vehicle got close enough
for me to see the driver, I saw him
looking over his shoulder, pushing
over to the left lane too late,” he says.
“As I ran for the ditch, the driver of
the vehicle came barreling down my
One winter day,