State Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, prefiled legislation last week that would allow tow truck operators to use rear facing blue lights while performing tow recovery operations along the side of a road.
“The big part of the bill is to support the existing ‘move over, slow down,’ requirements for drivers when encountering roadside accidents,” Wilson said.
The legislation, Senate Bill 5023, would not permit tow trucks to use front facing blue lights or use blue lights while going to or from the scene of an accident.
“You should never see in the rear view mirror red and blue lights (from a tow truck),” Wilson said. “A tow truck operator even on the way is not allowed to use those red and blue lights until they get into the accident zone.”
Wilson added tow truck operators would be allowed to use the blue lights while accelerating back into traffic after leaving an accident scene, telling The Reflector the public knows how difficult it is to get back into traffic after being on the side of the road.
“This is for the use of red and blue lights, not for the abuse of red and blue lights,” Wilson said.
According to Wilson, the bill works on what he calls two fundamental principles. The first principle is to get the attention of drivers during roadside emergencies.
“Tell the motorist there’s something going on here and proceed with extra caution,” Wilson explained. “A red and blue light is something most people react to. … Let’s give these workers a chance to do their job and go home.”
The second principle is to honor the existing legislation that requires drivers to move over and slow down when they see an accident or other roadside emergency activity.
“(The bill) reminds everybody that it is a violation to be a dangerous motorist,” Wilson added.
The bill is a response to the deaths of tow truck operators killed while working in Southwest Washington. Wilson told The Reflector there have been two tow truck operator deaths in the 19th Legislative District in recent years. The bill would be known as the Arthur Anderson and Raymond Mitchell Tow Operators Safety Act, in honor of two tow operators who died in the 19th District while performing their jobs. The death of Arthur Anderson was previously reported on by The Reflector.
“It honors in the name, specifically, two men who went to work and lost their lives and weren’t able to go home that night,” Wilson said. “They were trying to make our lives better.”
The bill comes after Wilson introduced two pieces of traffic safety legislation, Senate Bill 5635 and Senate Bill 5907, during the 2022 legislative session. SB 5907 was passed unanimously out of the Senate and House Transportation Committee but was not advanced by the House Rules Committee. According to Wilson, most of what he wanted from those bills were passed by the Legislature as part of its 2022 transportation package but SB 5023 is an attempt to finish checking off the boxes of what is left.
The bill, only three pages long, is co-sponsored by one of Wilson’s Democratic counterparts in the Senate, Sen. John Lovick, D-Mill Creek.
Wilson said Lovick’s past public service as a police officer led him to cosponsor SB 5023 as well as Wilson’s original two traffic safety bills. In Wilson’s view, Lovick’s professional experience has made him aware of the importance of traffic safety.
“I already have bipartisan support. Sen. Lovick is the primary cosponsor,” Wilson said. “It’s ironic we’re talking about red and blue lights, but it’s also a sign that red and blue bipartisanship is what it’s going to take to pass this bill. This is a really common sense bill that I expect to get lots of bipartisan support for.”
According to Wilson, there’s already a companion bill to SB 5023 in the House that will be sponsored by Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama.
“This bill is back and will have more support than ever,” Wilson said. “When we get good things done, it makes the job worth it.”
