A new law in New Mexico is impacting commercial motor vehicles across the state.Senate Bill 102 went into effect in July. It requires semi-truck drivers to stay in the right-hand lane.So far, New Mexico State Police told KOAT, they’ve cited at least 105 drivers for violating the new law.”New Mexico State Police is enforcing this new law pretty heavy,” said Officer Nicholas Chavez. “We’ve seen a lot of semi and commercial vehicle crashes, fatalities, as well as other incidents because of driving behavior. A lot of the times a commercial truck that’s driving in the left lane will drift off the roadway, go into oncoming traffic, as well as impede traffic on our highways.”KOAT road along with Officer Chavez Thursday afternoon to find out how often he sees the new law being broken. It took just minutes.”This driver is not making any indication that they’re going to attempt to pass the vehicle, if you look at the truck’s momentum and the speed. Now he’s moving over, but we could still stop him for that because we did observe it in plain view,” explained Officer Chavez.Trucks are allowed to use the left lane in order to safely pass another car, to give space for emergency vehicles and roadside assistance crews on the shoulder and to help keep the right lane clear for merging cars and drivers exiting the roadway.”It happens anywhere in the state, but I-40 specifically, we do see a lot of violators,” said Officer Chavez. “I-40 and I-25 which runs through our state, that’s a major road for commerce. It’s a major thoroughfare.”Signs are posted along the interstates informing drivers to keep to the right.Cruising in the left lane may seem like a small infraction, but according to Officer Chavez, it can cause a lot of other issues.”You can drift off the roadway to the median, hit oncoming traffic, lose control or just impeding traffic,” said Officer Chavez. “With the 80,000-pound commercial truck compared to a passenger vehicle, it can be very catastrophic. Innocent motorists sometimes lose their lives or get severely injured. That can affect them for the rest of their lives.”Officer Chavez is part of the department’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau and if a driver gets stopped by him, he can inspect all aspects of the semi-truck.”We do see some companies and some trucks that don’t really keep up with maintenance on the vehicles as well as with their driving standards,” said Officer Chavez. He checks everything from the driver’s logs, bill of lading, commodity paperwork to blinkers and tire treads.”A lot of the truck drivers, they do get upset when we do pull over, but we try to explain to them it has a bigger meaning behind it. We’re not here to ruin anybody’s day. We’re just here to make sure that everyone’s in compliance and they’re safe,” said Officer Chavez.If caught disobeying the new law, drivers will be given a $250 citation for the first two offenses. The third increases to $500.It is also illegal for those in a regular vehicle to coast in the left-hand lane.
A new law in New Mexico is impacting commercial motor vehicles across the state.
Senate Bill 102 went into effect in July. It requires semi-truck drivers to stay in the right-hand lane.
So far, New Mexico State Police told KOAT, they’ve cited at least 105 drivers for violating the new law.
“New Mexico State Police is enforcing this new law pretty heavy,” said Officer Nicholas Chavez. “We’ve seen a lot of semi and commercial vehicle crashes, fatalities, as well as other incidents because of driving behavior. A lot of the times a commercial truck that’s driving in the left lane will drift off the roadway, go into oncoming traffic, as well as impede traffic on our highways.”
KOAT road along with Officer Chavez Thursday afternoon to find out how often he sees the new law being broken. It took just minutes.
“This driver is not making any indication that they’re going to attempt to pass the vehicle, if you look at the truck’s momentum and the speed. Now he’s moving over, but we could still stop him for that because we did observe it in plain view,” explained Officer Chavez.
Trucks are allowed to use the left lane in order to safely pass another car, to give space for emergency vehicles and roadside assistance crews on the shoulder and to help keep the right lane clear for merging cars and drivers exiting the roadway.
“It happens anywhere in the state, but I-40 specifically, we do see a lot of violators,” said Officer Chavez. “I-40 and I-25 which runs through our state, that’s a major road for commerce. It’s a major thoroughfare.”
Signs are posted along the interstates informing drivers to keep to the right.
Cruising in the left lane may seem like a small infraction, but according to Officer Chavez, it can cause a lot of other issues.
“You can drift off the roadway to the median, hit oncoming traffic, lose control or just impeding traffic,” said Officer Chavez. “With the 80,000-pound commercial truck compared to a passenger vehicle, it can be very catastrophic. Innocent motorists sometimes lose their lives or get severely injured. That can affect them for the rest of their lives.”
Officer Chavez is part of the department’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau and if a driver gets stopped by him, he can inspect all aspects of the semi-truck.
“We do see some companies and some trucks that don’t really keep up with maintenance on the vehicles as well as with their driving standards,” said Officer Chavez.
He checks everything from the driver’s logs, bill of lading, commodity paperwork to blinkers and tire treads.
“A lot of the truck drivers, they do get upset when we do pull over, but we try to explain to them it has a bigger meaning behind it. We’re not here to ruin anybody’s day. We’re just here to make sure that everyone’s in compliance and they’re safe,” said Officer Chavez.
If caught disobeying the new law, drivers will be given a $250 citation for the first two offenses. The third increases to $500.
It is also illegal for those in a regular vehicle to coast in the left-hand lane.
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