A man was killed Thursday evening after being struck by an SUV while changing a tire on the shoulder of northbound Interstate 75 in Pembroke Pines, just south of Pines Boulevard. The man was thrown into the outside lane and died at the scene, according to investigators.
The Florida Highway Patrol reported the crash at about 5:05 p.m., according to WPLG Local 10. Investigators say a 2026 Honda CR-V was traveling northbound in the outside merge lane when its 69-year-old driver attempted to move into the outside lane but was unable to complete the lane change safely. The Honda traveled between the outside shoulder and the outside lane before its front struck the man, who was in the process of changing the rear left tire of a vehicle.
The Honda driver was not injured, the outlet reports. Local 10 separately identified another 32-year-old man involved in the incident. The identity of the man who died is pending notification of next of kin, and authorities have not released additional details about the crash. No one has been cited in connection with the collision so far.
Highway Reopened After Hours-Long Closure
All lanes of northbound I-75 reopened by about 7:55 p.m. Thursday, several hours after the crash shut down the corridor during the evening commute, per the same account from Local 10. The stretch near Pines Boulevard has a history of trouble: a motorcyclist was killed in a multi-vehicle crash on the same northbound stretch in February 2024. State crash data cited by Flanagan & Bodenheimer shows more than 2,000 crashes occur annually on Florida highway entrance and exit ramps statewide, with the I-75 corridor near Pines Boulevard flagged as a site of frequent multi-vehicle collisions due to heavy traffic volume and rapid lane merges.
Florida's Move Over Law and the Risk to Stranded Drivers
Thursday's death highlights a danger state officials have tried to address through Florida's Move Over law. Effective January 1, 2025, the state expanded Florida Statute ยง 316.126 to require drivers to vacate the nearest lane or slow down to 20 mph below the posted speed limit when approaching any disabled vehicle stopped on the shoulder with hazard lights, flares, or emergency signage, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The rule previously applied mainly to emergency and official service vehicles before it was broadened to cover civilian disabled cars.
A Move Over violation can carry a fine of up to $158, mandatory court fees, and three points on a driver's license, per Online Sunshine. Accumulating 12 points within 12 months triggers a 30-day license suspension. Despite the penalties, FLHSMV recorded 205 traffic crashes and more than 17,500 citations statewide in 2024 for Move Over violations, and the agency's data indicates drivers aged 20 to 29 are statistically the most likely to fail to move over or slow down near stopped roadside vehicles.
A Pattern of Fatal Shoulder Strikes Across Florida
Thursday's crash is not an isolated case in Florida this year. A New Port Richey woman was killed and four others were injured on northbound I-75 in Sarasota County on April 12 when a semi-truck struck a line of vehicles stopped on the shoulder while occupants inspected a trailer tire issue, as Hoodline reported at the time. A Miami-Dade police deputy was hospitalized after a crash on the Florida Turnpike, prompting renewed public warnings about the Move Over law.
National research underscores how often these roadside strikes go undercounted. A 2024 AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study found that 123 roadside assistance providers were struck and killed by passing vehicles between 2015 and 2021, a toll nearly four times higher than official federal crash data indicated because state police reports frequently classified victims simply as pedestrians. The same research found 89% of fatal roadside struck-by crashes happened on highways with speed limits of 55 mph or higher.
Separately, AAA Foundation research published in March 2026 found that a record 15% of all police-reported U.S. traffic crashes in 2023 involved hit-and-run drivers, according to WRNJ Radio. It remains unknown whether citations, criminal charges, or blood-alcohol testing will follow in Thursday's Pembroke Pines crash once the full Florida Highway Patrol investigation concludes.
