A Florida Highway Patrol trooper and a 53-year-old Davenport man were both seriously injured Tuesday night after a pickup truck slammed into the back of a marked patrol car working a construction zone on southbound State Road 429 in Orange County. The trooper was airlifted to a hospital, while the truck's driver was rushed to a separate hospital, according to FHP.
According to FOX 35 Orlando, the crash happened at 9:12 p.m. in the southbound lanes of SR-429 in the Bay Lake area, where a marked FHP patrol car was stationed for an active lane closure. Troopers say the driver of a 2026 Toyota Tundra, traveling southbound, failed to move over for the patrol car and struck it from behind. The front of the Tundra hit the back of the patrol car, as detailed by Click Orlando, which also placed the crash near mile marker 6.
The trooper was airlifted to HCA Osceola Regional Medical Hospital with serious injuries and remained in stable condition, per FOX 35 Orlando. The Tundra driver, identified only as a 53-year-old man from Davenport, was taken to Celebration Hospital with serious injuries, officials said. FHP has not released additional details about the crash or the driver's identity.
Florida's Move Over Law and What It Requires
Florida law requires drivers to move over a lane for emergency, service, utility and disabled vehicles whenever it is safe to do so, per the FHP release relayed by FOX 35 Orlando. Under Florida Statutes Section 316.126, drivers approaching a stopped emergency, service, utility, construction or disabled vehicle on a multilane highway must vacate the nearest lane when conditions allow. If changing lanes isn't safe, the statute instead requires motorists to slow to 20 miles per hour below the posted speed limit, provided that limit is at least 25 mph — the same threshold FHP cited in its release on the SR-429 crash.
A violation of the Move Over law is classified as a noncriminal traffic infraction under Chapter 318, according to the statute, and FHP's release noted that a violation can bring a fine, fees and points on a driver's record. Despite the law being in place statewide, enforcement data shows the problem persisting: Florida recorded more than 19,800 Move Over violations in 2025, the second-highest total in nine years and more than 46% higher than in 2020, according to WINK News.
Troopers Face Risk Working Roadside
Tuesday's crash is a reminder of the hazards troopers and other roadside workers face even inside clearly marked construction zones. Similar incidents have unfolded elsewhere in the state: in Hillsborough County, a sheriff's office corporal was injured when her patrol car was struck by another vehicle at a crash scene, according to Tampa, FL Patch.
FHP has not released further details about the SR-429 crash, including the driver's identity beyond his age and hometown. Both the trooper and the Tundra driver remained hospitalized with serious injuries following the collision in the Bay Lake area.
